Kolkata: Exuding confidence that the saffron surge of last year’s Lok Sabha elections will continue in West Bengal, Union home minister Amit Shah on Sunday predicted that the BJP would come to power in the Assembly polls next year by dethroning the Trinamul Congress with a two-third majority.
He described the road to success a “very tough battle” before directing the party workers to fight it.
Ruling out the possibility of dynasty politics, Shah also declared that no “shehzada” but a “son of the soil” would become the next chief minister of the state.
He tore into Trinamul Congress supremo and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee after her tweet on “discrimination” while claiming that her fierce movement against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) would fail.
Several BJP workers were heard shouting controversial ‘goli maaro’ slogans at Esplanade, en route to their party’s mega rally in support of CAA at the Shahid Minar ground, where Shah kick-started the party's campaign Aar Noi Annay (No More Injustice).
Waving BJP flags, they chanted, Desh ke gaddaron ko, goli maaro saalon ko (Shoot the traitors),” stumping the police.
Addressing the rally Shah said, “Mamataji would now wait and watch how the BJP comes to power with a thumping majority in the next Assembly polls. In 2014, the BJP got 87 lakh votes here. But in 2019, we got 2.3 crore votes here resulting in the BJP getting 18 MPs. I am confident that the progression, which started with 18 seats in the Lok Sabha polls, is continuing and is not going to stop.”
He told the BJP workers, “It will rest with a BJP government’s formation with two-third majority in the next Assembly polls. It is a very tough battle. You will have to fight it for Bengal's development. The entire leadership including me will be with you for this. The thought of appointing a Rajkumar as a successor cannot happen in Bengal.”
The Union home minister added, “No shehzada (prince) would become the next Bengal CM. A son of the soil, who will emerge as a leader, will become the next Bengal CM.”
Spelling out a mobile number he asked the crowd to dial it in support of the CAA which, he assured, would give citizenship to the refugees.
Shah asserted that it would give citizenship to the refugees while ending a host of issues: injustice to the people, corruption, syndicate nexus, extortion, improvement in law and order, industrialisation and infiltration under the Trinamul’s rule of a decade.
His blistering attack on the Trinamul chief was significant as Banerjee, in an oblique reference to the CAA, tweeted in the morning, “Today on @UN #ZeroDiscriminationDay, it pains me to witness the politics of discrimination being woven into the fabric of India. Let us pledge to uproot all forms of division based on caste, creed, and religion from our society. We will never stand for discrimination of any kind.”
Shah also cautioned those “planning to break and harm the country and destroy its peace,” to fear the National Security Guard (NSG). As a further warning, he asserted that the NSG would act tough if such elements did not relent. Shah, however, did not name his targets and kept it in suspense.
He also advised the NSG to reduce “operational time” of its counter-terror mechanism in order to make it swifter.
Shah was speaking at the inauguration of NSG 29 Special Composite Group Complex, an upgraded and permanent address of the elite counter-terror force.
