Mamata only vaccine against "Virus BJP": Abhishek Banerjee

Dinhata (WB), October 25

TMC national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee Monday courted controversy by calling BJP a “virus”  and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee the “only vaccine” which will “eradicate” it  in the next Lok Sabha poll in the country.

Banerjee also slammed the saffron camp calling it the “enemy of the Hindus” for trying to allegedly polarise the upcoming assembly by-poll in West Bengal by using as a poll plank the violence against the Hindu minority in neighbouring Bangladesh.

The de facto number two in the Trinamool Congress also criticised BJP for “thrusting” on the people the by-election in two of the four seats that will go to the poll later this week.

“Winning BJP candidates Jagannath Sarkar (Shantipur) and Nisith Pramanik (Dinhata) had resigned as MLAs after being elected by the people. They had thought that they would become ministers after BJP wins in Bengal. But the party failed and they were no longer eager to continue,” he said addressing a poll campaign rally here.

The two resigned to retain their post as MPs. If they were so keen on holding on to their Lok Sabha seat, they should not have fought assembly election, Banerjee said.

Pramanik was inducted to the central ministry as union minister of state for home and sports.

By-election to two other seats – Gosaba and Khardah are being held following the death of their elected MLAs. 

“They (Sarkar and Pramanik) dishonoured the verdict of the people to retain their parliamentary berths. The BJP leaders used to visit Coochbehar regularly during the assembly poll but have stopped coming after their defeat. They had made false promises of a Narayani Sena in the central forces, but Mamata Banerjee has kept her promise of creating a Narayani battalion. This is the difference,” the nephew of Mamata Banerjee pointed out.

The TMC leader asserted that the party would make a “4-0 sweep” in the October 30 by-poll.

“The entire country is eagerly waiting for the by-poll result. People of the country want a leader like Mamata Banerjee. That is why they raised slogans such as ‘Desh ki netri kaisi ho, Mamata didi jaisi ho’. Like the vaccines that fight Covid-19,  Mamata Banerjee is a vaccine against virus BJP,”  Elaborating, he said  “Just as we have to take two doses of the vaccine to fight Covid, the first jab against virus BJP will be on October 30 through your vote in the by-poll. The second dose to eradicate the virus BJP will be during the next Lok Sabha poll.”  Banerjee contended that BJP is trying to win the by-election in Shantipur and Dinhata riding the wave created the recent communal violence in Bangladesh.

  “The BJP leaders are saying that they will benefit from the violence against the minorities in Bangladesh. The BJP, which boasts of being the saviour and the flag bearer of Hindu religion, is trying to gain mileage from the communal violence in Bangladesh. What kind of Hindus are these BJP leaders who seek to gain mileage from the attack on fellow Hindus in Bangladesh?” he asked.

 BJP has kick started a high pitch campaign in Dinhata and Santipur in Coochbehar and Nadia districts which border Bangladesh and has highlighted the atrocities on Hindus in the neighbouring country.

The two constituencies have a sizeable number of voters who trace their roots to Bangladesh. They had to leave erstwhile East Pakistan during partition in 1947 or its Liberation War in 1971. Both the seats were won by BJP in the April-May state poll on the party’s CAA poll plank.

 Banerjee also hit out at Congress for failing to fight against BJP and claimed that the TMC supremo is emerging as the “undisputed leader” from Kashmir to Kanyakumari.

“There are several other national parties. But they have failed to put up a fight against the BJP. Congress has surrendered before the BJP in the last seven years. It is only TMC that has not bowed before the threats of the saffron camp,” he said.

The TMC leader asserted “We will never bow our heads – the more you threaten us, the more fearsome force we will turn into … Mamata Banerjee is the spearhead to fight and defeat the Modi-Shah regime in the next general election,” he asserted.

TMC, he said, has already expanded its footprints in Tripura and Goa and is planning to venture out to a few other states in the days to come.

 “Our party is making its presence felt all over the country. We will win the Goa assembly poll in a few months and we will dislodge the BJP government in Tripura in 2023. Wherever BJP is in power, we will go there and fight against them,” Banerjee said. PTI