“They (BJP) are talking about the money with TMC leaders. From where is the BJP getting thousand of crores to dislodge elected state governments in line of the Maharashtra model. The BJP is parking money abroad through hawala. The BJP has to be defeated in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls," she said.
The West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress (TMC) supremo was addressing a rally of her party's student wing. At the event, Banerjee said a malicious campaign has been unleashed against senior TMC leaders, including her, Kolkata mayor and TMC leader Firhad Hakim and General Secretary of the All India Trinamool Congress Abhishek Banerjee.
The West Bengal CM also talked about the accused in the Bilkis Bano rape case getting remission at the helm of just 11 years. She said, “The BJP talks about 'Beti Bachao' and 'Beti Padhao' and its government released those involved in Bilkis Bano case. Is this justice? We will organise 48-hour long dharna here in Kolkata to press for action against the accused".
Further the Trinamool Congress supremo announced that her party would hold a two-day dharna or sit-in demonstration in support of Bilkis Bano. According to reports, two women leaders of the TMC will lead the protest in Kolkata. Further TMC MP Mohua Maitra has already filed a petition in the court against the culprits of Bilkis Bano. TMC has also demanded that the eleven convicts be sent back to jail.
Referring to the recent incident of the alleged rape of a woman at the India-Bangladesh border by BSF jawans, she wondered whether such an incident happened due to the Centre's decision to broaden the paramilitary force’s jurisdiction from 15km to 50km in bordering areas.
On the increasing cases of raids by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED), the TMC supremo reiterated that the BJP is only using ‘central agencies and black money’ to topple elected governemnts. This comes as senior TMC leaders Partha Chatterjee and Anubrata Mandal face corruption charges in a SSC teacher recruitment scandal, marring the image of the ruling party in West Bengal.
“The BJP is branding everybody as thieves. They are campaigning in a way as if all of us in the TMC are thieves and only the BJP and its leaders are holy. Had I not been in politics, I would have torn out their tongues," she said.
Apprehending that Hakim might be arrested as he was recently summoned by the central agencies, the TMC supremo said, “If he is arrested, you can rest assured it will be a fake case, just to harass him,"
“They (BJP) are talking about the money with TMC leaders. From where is the BJP getting thousand of crores to dislodge elected state governments in line of the Maharashtra model. The BJP is parking money abroad through hawala. The BJP has to be defeated in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls," she said.
Mamata Banerjee further said, "I challenge them to arrest me if they (BJP) can'. She vowed to defeat the BJP in the next Lok Sabha polls.
(With PTI inputs)
