With the Bengal Assembly elections just about a year away and State Opposition Leader Suvendu Adhikari ceaselessly bombarding the Mamata Banerjee Government on the issue of Muslim appeasement the Trinamool Congress has gone on a counter offensive with its time-tested weapon of alleged central deprivation of the State.

Hours after TMC general secretary set the tone for anti-BJP tirade claiming that unlike the TMC the saffron party had failed to learn from its mistake and continued to deprive Bengal which would in the long run be electorally counterproductive for them senior party MP Kalyan Banerjee launched a scathing attack on the Union Government for depriving Bengal of its rightful dues.

Slamming Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chowhan for acting as an agent who worked in the interest of the rich and deprived States like Bengal, Serampore MP said “Shivraj Chowhan is a ‘dalal’ (agent) for the rich. He does nothing for the poor which is why he was removed from as the Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh.”

The TMC MPs in Parliament on Tuesday demonstrated against the Centre for holding back the State’s funds for 100-days’ scheme. “Bengal has been demanding its rightful dues that have been stopped for the past several years … central funds due to Bengal should be given to us ... it is taxpayers’ money … it is not their personal money … Shivraj Chowhan is not clearing the dues because he tried to form a Government there but the people rejected them … now they are taking revenge … and if they go on doing this … if they continue to withhold funds then they will never be able to come to power in Bengal,” Kalyan Banerjee. 

His statement came hours after Abhishek Banerjee slammed the BJP for allegedly failing to learn its lessons from its acts.

“The BJP has failed to learn its lessons… unlike the TMC … in 2019 they won 18 seats and the TMC got 22 … but the TMC rectified its mistakes and learnt from it but the BJP went on committing them … still they are repeating their mistakes and depriving Bengal of its rightful dues … the Centre has withheld Rs 2 lakh crore that belongs to the State of Bengal … despite repeated reminders and despite repeatedly coming to Delhi with tomes files they have refused to clear the State’s funds … but this is strategy is counterproductive … this was proved in 2021 Assembly elections when the TMC roared back to power with a thumping majority and the BJP stopped at 77 seats,” the junior Banerjee who is also the nephew of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said.

Reacting to the TMC’s allegations the BHP however said that the Centre had never withheld the State’s funds. “Prime  Minister Narendra Modi has been equally cooperative with all the States … but the problem lies somewhere else … the State has been asked to account for the previous funds allocated in MNREGA and PM housing and other schemes … but they have failed to do so as their leaders have devoured hundreds of crores belonging to the poor man … the BJP Government cannot allow the TMC leaders to be enriched at the cost of the poor,” senior leader Dilip Ghosh said.