Shah Promises UCC Implementation and Bengali CM if BJP Wins West Bengal

Union Home Minister Amit Shah vows to implement the Uniform Civil Code in West Bengal within six months if the BJP wins, promising a Bengali chief minister and addressing concerns about food habits.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday said the Uniform Civil Code will be implemented in West Bengal within six months of the BJP coming to power in the state, and the BJP will make a "son of Bengal" the chief minister.

At a press conference after unveiling the BJP's Assembly poll manifesto -- 'Sankalp Patra' -- he accused the Mamata Banerjee-led TMC of practising appeasement politics, and sought to counter TMC's allegation that the BJP would interfere with the food habits of Bengalis.

Uniform Civil Code and Appeasement Politics

"The recommendation for the Uniform Civil Code is not of the BJP. It is of the Constituent Assembly," Shah said, defending the push for the uniform civil law and claimed that it remained unimplemented for decades because of "appeasement politics".

"It was due to appeasement politics that the UCC was not implemented for so long. In whichever states we have formed governments, we have implemented them, and we will do it in Bengal too," he said.

The BJP, in its manifesto, has promised to implement the UCC within six months of coming to power in West Bengal.

"There will be one law for every citizen in Bengal," Shah said.

In a remark clearly aimed at sharpening the BJP's pitch, he said, "What is appeasement? Is it allowing one person to have four wives, or asking everyone to follow the law of the land?"

Chief Ministerial Candidate

The former BJP chief also sought to address a question that has long dogged his party in Bengal -- who would be its chief ministerial face.

"We are not a dynastic party where, after the aunt, the nephew would take over. I can assure the people of Bengal that our chief minister will be a Bengali and a citizen of Bengal," he said.

Dismissing Allegations and Addressing Concerns

Referring to videos of Humayun Kabir released by the TMC, in which the suspended party leader purportedly claims proximity with BJP leaders to split minority votes, Shah dismissed the speculation.

"Humayun Kabir and the BJP are at two opposite poles. Rather than having an understanding with such a party, we would prefer to sit in the opposition," he said.

Shah further alleged that Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee was capable of manufacturing political narratives through videos. "You do not know Mamataji's capabilities. She can create many such videos," he said.

Seeking to blunt one of the TMC's most effective lines of attack, Shah said a BJP government would not interfere with Bengal's food culture. "Consumption of fish and eggs will not be stopped. This is a rumour by the TMC," he said.