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JP Nadda sharpens attack on Mamata Banerjee, avoids naming Abhishek
Interestingly, for the first time, Nadda did not refer to Mamata Banerjee as pishi (aunt) and her nephew Abhishek Banerjee as bhaipo in Bengali.
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) national president JP Nadda, who visited West Bengal for about 10 hours on Saturday, sharpened his attack on chief minister Mamata Banerjee, alleging that she has lost her credibility because in Bengal “corruption has been institutionalized, the administration has been politicized and politics has been criminalized.”
Nadda, who visited a village at Katwa in East Burdwan district to launch the party’s first poll campaign aimed at Bengal’s farmers and later held a massive roadshow in the district’s Burdwan town, told the media in the evening that the TMC, which brands BJP leaders as “outsider,” does not represent Bengal’s culture but the BJP does.
Nadda reiterated at the press conference that the Centre was determined to implement the new citizenship law in the country but did not set any timeframe. “The Citizenship (Amendment) Act will be implemented in letter and spirit. We are committed. We are framing the rules,” said Nadda.
Interestingly, for the first time, Nadda did not refer to Mamata Banerjee as pishi (aunt) and her nephew Abhishek Banerjee as bhaipo in Bengali. During one of his speeches he said, “While the farmer’s income has touched the bottom, that of the 'naya rajkumar' (new prince) has gone up 200 times.”
When asked who he was referring to as the 'new prince', Nadda said, “The masses know who he is. They were taking his name today. Why do you want me to name him?”
Nadda also refused to comment on Madhya Pradesh minister Narottam Mishra’s comment during a recent visit to a Bengal district. Mishra had said that once the BJP comes to power in the state it will introduce a law against inter-religious marriage commonly referred to as love jihad. The Madhya Pradesh government introduced the Madhya Pradesh Freedom of Religion ordinance 2020 on Thursday.
“Our only jihad (holy war in Islam) is against infiltrators,” said Nadda.
Significantly, the exchange of rhetoric between the BJP and the TMC revolved around Bengal’s history and culture throughout Saturday although Nadda made several remarks on politics and the state’s economy. For every comment that Nadda made in Katwa at Burdwan, replies from TMC leaders came at ruling party rallies in other districts.
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“Do coal mafia, extortion, politics of appeasement and cow smuggling represent the rich culture of Bengal? There was a time when people used to say “What Bengal thinks today, India thinks tomorrow.” The state contributed immensely to the freedom struggle and every intellectual movement. Shyama Prasad Mookerjee, founder of the Bharatiya Jan Sangh (parent party of the BJP) was a pride of Bengal. We drew inspiration from Bengal to build the nation. We present the true culture of Bengal,” said Nadda.
Nadda, whose wife is a Bengali, quipped, “In personal life, I live Bengal.”
“On the other hand, the language Mamata Banerjee has used in her comments on me and the Prime Minister is not befitting of a chief minister,” he added.
Several TMC leaders reacted to Nadda’s comments. While addressing a TMC rally in North 24 Parganas district, Lok Sabha member Saugata Roy said, “These BJP leaders, including Narendra Modi, parrot a few lines from Tagore’s poems from written scripts. Ask them to recite the next four lines and they will go silent. They cannot become Bengalis or know its culture and heritage overnight.”
Nadda also said that during the day Bengal ranks 24th among the 29 states when it comes to procurement price paid to farmers. He launched the BJP’s first campaign for Bengal’s farmers at Jagadanandapur village in the Katwa area of East Burdwan, which is considered the state’s rice bowl.
“Ever since the BJP came to power at the Centre, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has made a six-fold increase in the central budget for farmers. He implemented the minimum support price recommended by the Swaminathan committee. The new farm laws will make farmers free. These will enable farmers to set the price of their products and choose the buyer,” Nadda said while launching the 'Krishok Surokkha' (farmers’ protection) programme.
Nadda announced that 40,000 such meetings will be held across Bengal before the assembly elections.
Nadda’s plane landed at Andal airport in West Burdwan district. He flew to Katwa and Burdwan town in a chopper.
He also launched the door-to-door rice collection programme which has been named 'Ek Mutthi Chawal Sangrah' (collecting a fistful of rice) campaign. He visited five homes and collected the rice.
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“The 'Ek Mutthi Chawal Sangrah' campaign is to reassert the party and its government's commitment and conviction towards the growth, progress and prosperity of farmers. Before the 2021 Vidhan Sabha elections in West Bengal, the BJP will reach out to the homes of all the 73 lakh villagers across the state,” the BJP central office in Delhi said in the statement on Friday.
After collecting the rice, Nadda visited the home of Mathura Mondal, a farmer, to have lunch. Before addressing the rally he offered prayers at the popular Radha Gobinda temple associated with 15th-century saint Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.
The TMC government is planning to hold a special session of the legislative assembly to introduce a resolution against the Centre’s recent farm laws that led to unrest in Punjab.
Reacting to the campaign, Saugata Roy said, “Thousands of farmers are agitating outside the gates of Delhi against the Centre’s farm laws. Nadda should talk to the farmers if he dares to face them.”
“During my last visit on December 10, I was welcomed differently,” Nadda said, referring to the attack on his convoy. “Today I saw people in a different mood. The enthusiasm I notice shows that people of Bengal have made up their mind to welcome the BJP. Mamata Banerjee has now written to the Prime Minister that she wants to implement the Prime Minister Kisan Samman Nidhi programme. We have been asking her for a long time to do it,” said Nadda.
“The Calcutta High Court ordered an audit into the expenses made towards relief (after cyclone Amphan). But the government challenged it in the Supreme Court. Why? Why is she worried?” said Nadda.
Nadda offered prayers at the historic Sarbamangala temple in Burdwan town and led a roadshow from Burdwan Clock Tower to the Curzon Gate.
He addressed the media and the party's core committee members before returning to Delhi.
