The poll-bound politics of Bengal rode the e-wheels with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday riding too-and-fro to State Secretariat Nabanna on an electronic scooty to drive home the point on scortching fuel prices.
A day after hurling “Dangabaj” (rioter) and “Doitya” (Demon) abuses on Prime Minister Narendra Modi the Chief Minister on Thursday rode a battery-driven scooty instead of the usual Santro car that she uses to travel 8 km from her house at Kalighat to Nabanna.
While State Minister Firhad Hakim rode her to the secretariat in the morning, in the evening the Chief Minister rode back on her own with the security network in pursuit.
In her trademark white cotton sari, Banerjee put on a helmet and mask during the ride which was trailed by a group of other people from the ruling Trinamool Congress.
The entire ride was telecast through Facebook Live. Later even as the Chief Minister addressed the media, seated on the battery-operated scooter she attacked the Prime Minister saying, “this was a ride taken to remind Modi of his duties towards the common man whose lives he has made miserable by effecting massive rise in petro prices.”
Ridiculing the Prime Minister for giving free LPG gas connection and then charging Rs 800 per cylinder, Banerjee said “think about a family that needs two gases per month spending Rs 1,600 on that account … then how will that family buy foods and spend on education and health.”
At a time “when the price of crude has come down to half this Government has effected a 100 percent rise in the price of cooking gas… It sold for Rs 400 with subsidy then and it is selling for Rs 800 now after Modi removed that subsidy that was a dire necessity for the people … even yesterday it was increased by Rs 25,” Banerjee said, adding how “even the subsidy on kerosene has been taken away.”
She asked, “what the 2 crore people of my State who use kerosene oil will do? About 20 crore people of India survive on kerosene oil. They cannot buy gas for Rs 800, they cannot get subsidy on kerosene … then what will they eat,” demanding an immediate roll-back on fuel prices.
“I want Modi ji either to tack back the prices or go back from power,” Banerjee said adding she would continue her agitation in Bengal and would appeal to the opposition ruled states to do the same. “I will request Uddhav Thackery, MK Stalin, Kerala, Punjab, Rajasthan and all other Governments to take up the matter in a coordinated manner,” Banerjee said.
“Modi is selling the country. This government is anti-people, anti-women, anti-farmer, and anti-young generation. We want this government to go,” the Chief Minister said.
Attacking the Prime Minister for allowing a cricket stadium in Gujarat to be named after him, Banerjee said “this is height of dictatorship where the President of India is made to inaugurate a stadium named after the Prime Minister.”
In an apparent reference to how the two ends of the stadium was named after two top industrialists of the country Banerjee, said “it is like a complete circle of events where there will be only “Hum do … humare do” apparently indicating at the Prime Minister, Home Minister Amit Shah and the two industrialists.
However, lampooning Banerjee for making the people’s cause an election issue, Congress Lok Sabha leader said “she is making it an election publicity stunt instead of cutting taxes on her own end … Why does she not lift her own taxes … the Chhattisgarh Government has done it by reducing Rs 12 on fuel prices.”
CPI(M) Legislature Party Leader Sujan Chakrabarty said “now she is taking resort to cheap election stunt but when we proposed in Assembly two years ago to bring a proposal for including fuel in GST regime and send it to the Centre she would not listen to it … at that time her won Finance Minister Amit Mitra was the chairman of the GST council… now she is showing this hypocrisy.”