Mamata: Who caused terror attacks in Pahalgam and Delhi, if infiltration exists only in Bengal?
Times of India | 31 December 2025
Kolkata/Bankura: Who caused terror attacks in Pahalgam and Delhi if infiltration existed only in Bengal, asked Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee barely 30 minutes after Union home minister Amit Shah claimed that state govt was allowing infiltration in Bengal for its "vote bank" politics.
"They claim there are infiltrators only in Bengal and none in Kashmir. Then who carried out the Pahalgam attack? You say infiltrators exist only in Bengal, then what happened in Delhi? Who was responsible for the blast? Are infiltrators present nowhere except Bengal? So, was it you who did it?" said Banerjee while speaking at a public rally in Bankura's Barjora.
In a point-to-point rebuttal of Shah's claims, Banerjee asked: "You speak of infiltration, but which ministry is responsible for it? I gave land wherever required. First do your job there. Border management is not our responsibility. You expanded a 1.5-km area into 50 km to include the villages, using BSF to threaten people. I am not against central forces or central agencies, but I will object if they act without impartiality."
Repeatedly using the term ‘Dushasan', Banerjee sought the home minister's resignation without naming him. "A person representing misrule has arrived in Bengal. Whenever elections come, people like Duryodhan and Dushasan appear. Just seeing them creates fear, as if they come to cause harm. You must resign. You are the home minister of the country; you should resign," said Banerjee, adding, "Till my last breath, I will fight these Dushasans."
Claiming that the SIR of voter rolls was a huge "scam" being conducted with the help of artificial intelligence (AI), Banerjee said TMC would gherao the Election Commission's office in Delhi if the name of a single legitimate voter is deleted from the rolls. Alleging that names of 54 lakh voters had been deleted due to "Dushasan Babu", the CM said: "Under the pretext of SIR, people are being harassed. They (BJP netas) are going around saying names of 1.5 crore people in Bengal would be deleted from voter lists. Why? You took 2 months for SIR, but deleted names in 1.5 days. The home Minister must resign. If not, people will remove you."
Questioning why Bengal was being blamed for everything and questioned Shah's performance as the country's home minister, saying, "You must resign. You are the home minister of the country; you should resign."
Banerjee questioned why heads should not roll over more than 50 SIR-related deaths in the state. "Last time they came saying "200-paar" and failed miserably. This time they are using SIR. Many people lost their lives due to SIR. Don't you know how to respect elderly citizens," she asked.
Alleging that "a BJP IT cell member was sitting inside Delhi's EC office, falsely signing and deleting names in the name of EROs", the CM said: "The ERO association wrote a letter about this… There is no guarantee that names appearing in the draft list will remain in the final list. BJP is indulging in serious misconduct. Do not be arrogant just because you are in office."
Responding to Shah's claims on corruption in the state, Banerjee claimed, "We take action when our people are corrupt. You caught a couple of us. Were you able to keep them in jail? You could not. You are releasing your murderers and rapists. All you do is talk. You claim not to practise nepotism. Then how did your son become the ICC chairman?"
Reacting to allegations that land was not being provided to BSF, Banerjee said: "Who built the Tarakeshwar–Bishnupur railway line? Was it done without Mamata Banerjee giving land for central projects? If land was not given, how did ECL get land to extract coal? Was land not given in Raniganj, Jamuria, Bankura? Was land not given for Bongaon–Petrapole? For Andal airport? They are lying."
The CM also responded to Shah's allegations on appeasement. "They are even calling Matangini Hazra a Muslim. They keep on saying it about me as well. They can call me scheduled caste, Adivasi... whatever or anything they wish. I was born to work for people. I will continue to work for people of all religions throughout my life," she said.
Banerjee also coined the new slogan ‘Fatafati Khela', a new version of the now-famous ‘Khela Hobe' slogan.