Pre-poll war of words intensified as did head on clashes between Trinamool Congress and the BJP as Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday attacked the saffron outfit calling it worse than Maoists and more venomous than snakes.
Apparently playing on the fears of the Red menace in an erstwhile ultra-Red zone the Chief Minister while addressing a mega rally at Purulia said, “the BJP is more dangerous than the Maoists … they will ruin Bengal, discontinue all the pro-poor schemes started by us,” once again raking up the outsider issue.
“Let them use terror tactic, let them issue any amount of threat but we shall not bow our heads before these outsiders who do not know about the real culture of Bengal who break the statues of Vidya Sagar, humiliate Rabindranath Tagore,” Banerjee said comparing the saffron leaders with cobra.
Criticising the Centre for christening January 23 the birth day of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose as “Parakram Diwas” Banerjee said that her government was “not happy with Centre’s decision,” adding her Government would call it “Desh Prem Diwas.’’ The Chief Minister will hold a ‘padayatra’ (foot-march ) in Kolkata to mark the special occasion.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Kolkata on January 23 to inaugurate the main programme to celebrate the birth anniversary of Bose. The celebrations will be held at Victoria Hall.
During his visit, PM is also likely to be a part of an event at the National Library, where he will inaugurate restored architectural sites and dedicate them to the people of West Bengal, Government sources said adding Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar will also be a part of the events that Modi is likely to attend.
Back to Purulia: Comparing the saffron outfit with cobra Banerjee said, “These people are as venomous as cobra … they will come, catch, swallow, eat and digest you before moving ahead as if nothing happened,” adding, “these are rioters, looters who create division in the society, set one community against the other, promise but do not deliver … ask them as to what happened to the Rs 15 lakh that they had promised before coming to power in Delhi.”
Asking the people to “drive these outsiders away when they come to ask for votes,” Banerjee attacked the BJP Government for browbeating the media into submission. “I do not understand how such big media houses give in to the threats of the BJP which is forcing them to run false news,” she said how the “BJP is trying to terrorise even the civil society.
“They are threatening the film people, the civil society but I will not tolerate this in Bengal… let them touch our film fraternity at Tollywood and then see the consequence.” She said.
Attacking the central government for its alleged “anti-farmer policy” Banerjee said “they are giving tall promises to farmers in Bengal but torturing the farmers of Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh who are sitting in the open in these cold months demanding the scrapping of the anti-farmer laws,” adding “these laws will help the corporate and the rich people to loot away your crop and reduce you into their slaves.”
Attacking the leaders like Suvendu Adhikari who left the Trinamool Congress to join the BJP Banerjee said “some people are leaving our party thinking that this will bother us… but we are relieved that these people are leaving the party … they are burden on us.”
Two districts away Adhikari hit back at Banerjee from a rally at Khejuri near Nandirgram saying the Chief Minister should get the “ex word” printed on her letter pads as “very soon she will be out of power.”
Replying to her decision of contesting the polls from Nandigram Adhikari said “she is thinking of contesting from two places but we will not allow her to do so… we will confine her here and defeat her by a huge margin.”
Meanwhile, skirmishes continued between the two parties as the BJP and TMC supporters clashed at Khejuri leaving a number of their supporters injured, sources said. A number of vehicles were damaged in the clashes, sources said.