As the West Bengal poll campaign intensifies, Prime Minister Narendra Modi continued his tirade against the Mamata Banerjee government on Sunday, terming the Trinamool Congress “an anti-North Bengal, anti-tribal, anti-tea garden, anti-women, and anti-youth party”.
“TMC is only busy appeasing its votebank. When North Bengal’s many regions were hit by heavy rains, the TMC government was celebrating in Kolkata at that time,” PM Modi said during a public rally in West Bengal’s northern district of Siliguri.
While addressing a rally at the Kawakhali ground in North Bengal, PM Modi asserted that the TMC government has destroyed West Bengal during its 15-year tenure and slammed the party for allocating Rs 6,000 crore for madrasas, but insufficient funds for the entire North Bengal.
“The example of discrimination towards North Bengal is seen in the budget of the TMC Government. The ruthless government has allocated nearly Rs 6,000 crore in the budget for madrasas. But for the development of such a large area in North Bengal, the Bengal government does not provide adequate budget. TMC is only engaged in appeasing its special vote-bank,” Modi said.
Mamata appeasing ‘tukde-tukde gang’
He criticised Mamata Banerjee’s TMC for rewarding the ‘tukde-tukde gang’, who had threatened to snap the Siliguri Corridor — the only land link connecting India to its eight northeastern states — by sending them to Parliament.
Regarding national security, PM Modi stated that Siliguri is also a major gateway to India’s security. “The Siliguri Corridor is not just a word; it is the arm of Mother India. One must remember what TMC did for appeasement — to please the vote bank. TMC supports such people from the streets to Parliament. That is the real face of TMC,” he alleged.
The Prime Minister further stated that the entire region, including Darjeeling, is a tea plantation area and the TMC government is destroying the plantations.
He drew the example of Assam, another tea-growing state in the neighborhood, where the BJP government has developed many facilities in the tea gardens. “Significant work has been done on the education, health, and employment of the children of tea plantation workers, and land leases are being provided to the workers there. Bengal BJP has also taken many resolutions here for the families of plantation workers. Land leases, permanent houses, water from taps, electricity, and employment opportunities will have to be given to workers’ families. This means that the BJP, if voted to power, will work on the workers’ earnings, education, medicine, and everything,” he said.
Furthermore, PM Modi stated that the children of Bengal should have opportunities to play and excel in sports. “That’s why the BJP in Bengal has announced plans to establish a Sports University in North Bengal,” he said.
Mentioning his meeting with cricketer Richa Ghosh, PM Modi said, “Daughters here are extremely talented; the country has benefited greatly from the talent of Mantu Ghosh, and nowadays, daughter Richa Ghosh is talked about a lot. The long-long sixes that daughter Richa Ghosh hits, that’s simply amazing. When I got the chance to meet Richa, I was deeply impressed by her determination and self-confidence.”
2 major schemes for tribal push
With the tribal vote playing a crucial role, PM Modi said, “For the development of tribal regions, the central government is implementing two major schemes totaling approximately Rs 1 lakh crore. These initiatives aim to improve infrastructure by constructing roads, providing access to clean water, and building schools and hospitals in tribal areas. However, the progress of these efforts is being obstructed by the TMC government, which is hindering the development of tribal villages.”
Ahead of the state Assembly elections scheduled to be held in two phases, on April 23 and April 29, Modi said Bengal will witness development at double speed with the ‘double engine’ government in power in the state.