Kolkata: Trinamool national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee on Sunday chose Mathurapur in South 24 Parganas, from where Union home minister Amit Shah launched BJP's Poriborton Yatra a few days ago, to launch a scathing rebuttal of the saffron party's claims on Bengal's debt, women's safety and law and order, citing central govt data.
Addressing a rally, Banerjee said "in conducting SIR, BJP dug its own grave", and challenged Shah to a public debate, vowing to prove TMC's superior governance record. "This is to democratically take revenge on those who have humiliated Bengalis and to teach them a lesson," he added.
"They put 60 lakh people under adjudication to stop them from voting, fearing they might vote for Trinamool. Those who voted for BJP earlier have seen their true colours," he said.
Banerjee said while Shah came here to inaugurate BJP's Rath Yatra, the party had little support on the ground. "Such is the condition of the yatra that they have had their ‘visarjan'. They came to Bengal to carry out SIR, but it seems the real SIR took place in their rallies. SIR happened in BJP. In trying to take away the rights of the people of Bengal, they dug their own grave," he claimed.
Banerjee alleged that Shah was not aware of Bengal's budget. "You spoke of 7th Pay Commission, but have you read Bengal's budget? We have announced it," he said.
On women's safety, the three-time Diamond Harbour MP slammed BJP-governed states using Sept 2025 NCRB data prepared by the Union home ministry. "UP ranks 1st, Maharashtra 2nd and Rajasthan 3rd in crimes against women. In UP, the number of crimes against women is 66,381. In Maharashtra it is 47,101, and in Rajasthan it is 45,450. When it comes to rape, Rajasthan ranks 1st, UP ranks 2nd, and MP is 3rd. All these states are BJP-governed," he stated.
"The maximum number of murders takes place in UP, followed by Bihar and Maharashtra. In riots, Maharashtra is 1st, Manipur 2nd and Bihar 3rd. I urge Amit Shah to use the Delhi Police or CRPF to find his speechwriter — everything was lies. We can lend you one," Banerjee said.
Challenging the debt jibe made by Shah, Banerjee alleged: "He (Shah) said Bengal has a debt of Rs 8 lakh crore. He further added that if a child is born, he would have a debt of Rs 77,000. Before the Modi govt came to office, the country's loan amounted to Rs 56 lakh crore. Today, after 12 years, the debt amount is Rs 197 lakh crore. Under the Modi govt, if a child is born in India, he will have a debt of Rs 1 lakh 44 thousand. If you think my data is wrong, you can file a case against me."