One can trust snake but not BJP: Mamata at Cooch Behar rally

Cooch Behar (WB), Apr 4 (PTI) West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday accused the BJP of not following the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) for the Lok Sabha polls and asserted that a poisonous snake can be trusted but not the saffron camp.

Addressing a rally in Cooch Behar, Banerjee alleged that the central investigating agencies, Border Security Force (BSF) and Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) are working at the behest of the BJP and urged the Election Commission to look into it and ensure a level playing field for all political parties.

"The BJP is asking you to enrol names for Awas Yojna again. Why will the names be enrolled again? They want further enrolment so that they can chuck it off. You can trust a poisonous snake; you can even pet it, but you can never trust the BJP... The BJP is destroying the country," she said.

Asserting that her party TMC will not bow before the "threat of central agencies", Banerjee urged women in Cooch Behar to file police complaints if "there are instances of BSF torturing locals" ahead of the polls, scheduled for April 19.

"The central investigating agencies, the NIA, Income Tax, BSF and CISF are working for the BJP. We will humbly plead to the Election Commission to ensure a level playing field as central agencies are working for the saffron camp. The BJP is violating the MCC," she said.

The BJP only "follows the principle of one nation, one party", Banerjee claimed.

"It is a matter of national shame that a person against whom there are several cases has been appointed as the minister of state for home affairs. He was sacked from our party. Now, he is the asset of the BJP," she said in an apparent reference to Nisith Pramanik.

Pramanik, a former leader of the TMC Youth Congress, was expelled from the party in 2018. He later joined the BJP.

Hitting out at the saffron camp for nominating former Cooch Behar SP Debashis Dhar, as its candidate from Birbhum, Banerjee said, "The truth of the BJP is reflected in the fact that the person responsible for the killing of five people at Sitalkuchi during the 2021 assembly polls has been nominated as its candidate." Dhar, who was SP Cooch Behar, during the last assembly polls, was later suspended and sent to compulsory waiting after the TMC returned to power for the third consecutive term.

While reiterating her refusal to implement the Citizenship Amendment Act in the state, Banerjee said that applying for CAA would designate an applicant as a foreigner and advised against it.

Dubbing the BJP a "jumla" party, the TMC supremo accused the saffron party of "peddling lies" regarding the CAA.

"The CAA is a trap to turn legal citizens into foreigners. Once you (BJP) implement CAA, NRC will follow. We would allow neither CAA nor NRC in West Bengal. If you apply, you will be designated as foreigners," Banerjee said.

She questioned the inclusion of a member from the census department in the CAA committee, stating, "Why has such a person been included if they have no plan for the NRC in the future? The CAA is the head and the NRC is the tail." Banerjee criticised the opposition bloc INDIA partners -- CPI (M) and Congress -- for "joining hands with the BJP" in West Bengal and asserted that the opposition front ceases to exist in the state.

"There is no INDIA bloc in West Bengal. I played a key role in the formation of the opposition bloc INDIA. Even the name of the alliance was given by me. But the CPI (M) and the Congress are working for the BJP in Bengal," she alleged.

Banerjee said, "Don't cast your vote in favour of the Congress and the CPI (M) if you want to defeat the BJP. Not a single vote to CPI (M) and Congress and their ally, a minority party (ISF)." "This minority party (ISF) is just like AIMIM. They are working to spilt the minority votes and help the BJP," she added.

Banerjee also claimed that the state administration and the hospital authorities did a commendable job in providing relief to those affected by the storm in Jalpaiguri on Sunday, which claimed five lives. PTI