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‘ ₹8,000 t-shirt': Bengal BJP slams TMC's Abhishek Banerjee after Cyclone Remal relief camp visit
The severe cyclonic storm 'Remal' has weakened since making landfall on Sunday night, moving east-northeast over Bangladesh.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Bengal criticised Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Abhishek Banerjee for allegedly wearing a “ ₹8,000” t-shirt during his visit to Cyclone Remal relief camps, describing it “mocking the poor and aggrieved”.
Abhishek Banerjee, who is also TMC's general secretary, inspected relief camps set up in South 24 Parganas for cyclone victims, as the storm caused heavy rain and widespread damage in parts of the state.
Earlier, TMC accused BJP of being indifferent to the suffering of Bengal's people and focusing on organising a drone show in Kolkata ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit on Tuesday.
In an X post, TMC said, “While BJP stays oblivious to the suffering of the people of Bengal and indulges in organising a drone show in Kolkata, Abhishek Banerjee visits relief camps to ensure that the people are receiving the necessary support to overcome Cyclone Remal.”
To counter it, BJP's Bengal unit posted a picture comparing Banerjee's t-shirt from the visit and commented, "Abhishek Banerjee wears Rs. 8,000 t-shirt while going for Cyclone Relief operations. Shame on TMC for mocking the poor and aggrieved."
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West Bengal is voting in all seven phases of the Lok Sabha polls, with 10 seats up for voting in the last phase scheduled for Saturday.
Abhishek Banerjee, the incumbent Diamond Harbour MP, is in tight contest against CPI(M)’s Pratikur Rahaman and Abhijit Das of the BJP.
The counting of votes is on June 4.
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Cyclone Remal latest updates
1. The severe cyclonic storm 'Remal' has weakened since making landfall on Sunday night, moving east-northeast at 15 kmph and centered over Bangladesh at 11:30 PM on Monday, as per the India Meteorological Department.
2. Kolkata Police reported that the storm severely impacted many areas of the city, with numerous trees uprooted.
3. Heavy rainfall caused severe waterlogging in Kolkata following the storm's landfall over the coasts of West Bengal and Bangladesh between Sagar Island and Khepupara, near southwest Mongla.
4. The Dhaka Tribune reported that 10 people were killed when Remal made landfall in Bangladesh's coastal area.
5. The storm damaged over 1,50,000 houses in Bangladesh, with more than 35,000 of them completely destroyed in 107 unions and 914 municipalities, according to Bangladesh's state minister for disaster management and relief Md Mohibbur Rahman.
