Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday raked the Sandeshkhali issue accusing the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) party of shielding the culprits.
Addressing a rally in Cooch Behar, PM Modi said, “It is the BJP alone that can put an end to the atrocities against women in this region. The entire country witnessed how the TMC government made every effort to shield the accused in Sandeshkhali. The BJP is committed to ensuring that the perpetrators of the Sandeshkhali incident are punished. They will be held accountable and will spend their lives behind bars.”
He said that the Modi government has taken tough decisions to ensure the nation is free of corruption and terrorism.
At the same venue, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee also took a dig at the BJP alleging that the saffron party has not been following the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) for the Lok Sabha polls.
She asserted that a poisonous snake can be trusted but not the saffron camp.
The TMC chief said 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 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.
Dubbing the BJP a “jumla” party, Banerjee accused the BJP of “peddling lies” regarding the Citizenship Amendment Act (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.
(With PTI inputs)