As Barrackpur goes to polls in the fifth phase of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, Singh talks to Sweety Kumari about his reasons for leaving the TMC and how important Bengal is for BJP’s national ambitions. Excerpts:
People are referring to you as the ‘Nitish Kumar of Bengal’. There are such posters in your constituency too.
It is not important in today’s politics. If some people are happy giving me names, let them. I was in a holiday mood (during his tenure with the TMC). The time I was in the TMC was “Covid time” for me. Now, I am back. It is what I eventually do that matters.
How do you decide if it’s time to leave a party?
I work 365 days. I am not like those students who sit with their books one night before their exams. I study the whole year. For me, the party is always secondary. I live for my voters. I am their bhai bandhu.
Why did you leave TMC?
The TMC is out of Mamata Banerjee’s grip now. It is in Abhishek Banerjee’s hands. This party will not survive for long. All those who had built the party are either in jail or are being controlled by someone.
No one investigated how she got that forehead injury? She didn’t come up with a strong statement either. She is always surrounded by so many people. If someone falls, you get bruises but if you are hit by someone you get an injury. We suspect it was not an accidental injury.
How important is West Bengal for the BJP nationally in this election?
Extremely important. The BJP is targeting ‘400 paar’ (400 plus seats) and for that it has to get a good number of seats in Bengal. It has to be the BJP’s best show in Bengal till now.
How many seats do you think BJP will get in Bengal and how many will go to the TMC?
If free and fair elections continue, the BJP will manage 28-30 seats. The TMC will not perform well as a good number of votes will get divided between the Communist Party of India (Marxist) and Congress.
The TMC has claimed that the BJP is politicising the Sandeshkhali incident for electoral gains.
The TMC knows that the Sandeshkhali incident will cost them this election and the party is panicking. Everyone is talking about Sandeshkhali. It is definitely a big issue in this election.
Barrackpur is often considered a hotspot of violence. Voters complain about the law and order situation in your constituency. You have been with the TMC and in the BJP too. Who do you blame for the problem?
Barrackpur is the land of (freedom fighter) Mangal Pandey, it is natural that people here are hot-headed. Entire Bengal has turned into a bomb manufacturing industry, why only Barrackpur? The CM is the Police mantri, she is responsible for this.
If you keep sheltering criminals, if the police instead of acting against a crime try to cover it, naturally the law and order situation will slip off your hands. It gives birth to resentment leading to more retaliation.
Mamata Banerjee does that openly, she calls them (criminals) “dustu chele” (naughty boys). Here, police give shelter to criminals and criminals are made political leaders. The Left government was known for using criminals during elections, Mamata Banerjee has gone a step further by making criminals fight elections.
People say Barrackpur is your bastion, where the BJP or TMC don’t matter.
It’s a good thing for any politician that so many people believe in you. I am with my janata (public) and in return I get their support. It’s not just Barrackpur, wherever you go in Bengal there is a section of people who vote according to me.
While you were with the TMC, what efforts did you make to improve the situation?
If the CM of a state likes people with a criminal background, what do you expect from her?
Is Ram Mandir a factor among Hindus of your constituency?
By building Ram Mandir, BJP has made a big chunk of voters happy and its impact is visible in my constituency too. Ghar ghar Ram hain, har ghar Ram hai.
You said Dum Dum, Hooghly and Kolkata Uttar have a good number of Hindi-speaking voters. Is the BJP trying to leverage your influence to consolidate its Hindi-speaking votebank in Bengal?
I consider myself a Bengali. There is no question of Bengali and Bihari (here). If you see me campaigning, I get love from Bengalis and non-Bengalis. Even people from Odisha and south India. Due to the thriving jute industry in Barrackpur, many Odisha natives work here. My family has been staying in Bengal for 140 years, I belong to this place.
Last month Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee alleged that the Centre was trying to ruin jute and tea industries in Bengal. She claimed that the Centre was not buying jute from Bengal.
Mamata Banerjee is one of the biggest liars you would ever meet. She is the CM, she should never talk without facts and documents. The central government has mandated that all food grains be packaged in jute bags. Every government buys jute through the Centre but it’s only Bengal that doesn’t buy a single jute bag (from the Centre). There were a total 22 jute Mills in Barrackpur, six have shut down completely. What can you expect from a state which doesn’t even consider jute as an industry and has kept it under the labour department?
In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the BJP got 18 seats. In the 2021 Assembly polls, the BJP had high expectations but the TMC made a clean sweep. Do you think when it comes to Assembly elections, people prefer TMC over the BJP in Bengal?
I don’t think so. In the 2019 polls, there were a few reasons. After the Sitalkuchi firing incident, the minority vote got consolidated towards TMC. Things have changed now. You will see in Murshidabad, the TMC will lose badly as the minority votes will go to the Congress.
There are many such examples where minority votes are going to the CPI(M) and Congress. Minorities have understood that Mamata Banerjee only uses them as a vote bank