News Analysis India

Tag: Abhishek Banerjee

  • Outsiders will have to return after Bengal assembly polls: Abhishek Banerjee

    By PTI
    KOLKATA: Hinting at BJP leaders visiting the state from other states before the West Bengal assembly election, the president of All India Trinamool Youth Congress Abhishek Banerjee Thursday said that “outsiders” will have to return after the state assembly poll.

    Banerjee was speaking at a TMC rally at Pailan in South 24 Parganas district where Union Home Minister Amit Shah was on a visit during the day to flag off the fifth and last rathayatra of BJP before the state election due in April-May.

    The BJP had failed to make any dent in the district though it had emerged as the main opposition in the state after the 2019 Lok Sabha poll.

    The ruling Trinamool Congress has often referred to BJP leaders from other states as “outsiders”.

    “Those coming here are not aware of the unique culture of Bengal but are making promises of making the state Sonar Bangla (prosperous Bengal).

    Our leader Mamata Banerjee will score a hattrick this time and outsiders will have to return yet again. It is a matter of time,” Banerjee, who is the nephew of the chief minister, said.

    ALSO READ | First fight Abhishek, then me: Mamata Banerjee challenges Amit Shah

    TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee will seek to be returned to power for the third consecutive time in the coming poll.

    “Why can’t they (BJP) make Sonar Uttar Pradesh, Sonar Rajasthan or a Sonar Haryana. I urge the people of West Bengal not to fall prey to their false campaign.

    The people must make sure that communal forces don’t raise their ugly heads in the state”, he said.

    Referring to the exodus from TMC, including ministers, Banerjee said that BJP has reached such a state that it was poaching leaders from the party to fight the state poll.

    “We will fight the saffron party tooth and nail. I am sure Trinamool Congress will get not less than 250 seats in the polls. The fight is to protect Bengal’s rich culture,” he asserted.

    West Bengal has a total 294 seats in the assembly.

    Referring to the state government’s health scheme ‘Swasthya Sathi’, he claimed that nearly ten crore people in the state have been given the cards to avail benefits under it.

    The scheme, which was launched in 2016, was expanded by the TMC government in November 2020 to cover the entire population of the state and has a basic health cover for secondary and tertiary care up to Rs 5 lakh per annum per family.

    The state government will fund the scheme.

    “On the other hand, Ayushman Bharat health scheme (of the Centre) is not for all. Those having scooters or smartphones are not eligible for it. But Swasthya Sathi card is for all – no exclusions”, the TMC MP said.

    Even West Bengal BJP president Dilip Ghosh’s family members have opted for the Swasthya Sathi card, he claimed.

    Banerjee criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for promising the people before the 2014 general election that every person’s bank account will be credited with Rs 15 lakh and assuring two crore employments per year.

    “How many jobs have been created in the last seven years (since 2014)?” he asked.

  • TMC will win Bengal assembly polls with 250 plus seats: Abhishek Banerjee

    By PTI
    KULPI: Trinamool Congress leader Abhishek Banerjee on Saturday asserted the TMC will secure 250 plus seats while the saffron party will find it difficult to cross the double digit mark.

    He was countering the BJP’s claim of coming to power in the state by winning over 200 seats in the polls to the 294-member assembly due in April-May.

    Addressing a public meeting here in South 24 Parganas district, Banerjee who is the youth wing president of the party and nephew of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee iterated that the saffron party’s clamour for a double-engine government in West Bengal (same party rule in the Centre as well as state) will fall flat before the single engine power of Mamata Banerjee.

    The TMC is going to form the government for the third consecutive term and the party will stay in power for 50 years, he said.

    “West Bengal will elect Mamata Banerjee as the chief minister for the third time,” the Diamond Harbour MP said.

    Referring to Dinesh Trivedi’s resignation from Rajya Sabha as a TMC member on Friday, Banerjee said “Trivedi was saying he was feeling suffocated.

    Let him go and get admitted in BJP’s ICU”.

    Noting that the only poll plank of the BJP is ‘Jai Shri Ram’ and it has no development agenda, the TMC leader alleged that the saffron party does not know to give respect to women.

    “They say Jai Shri Ram and not Jai Siya Ram. This is because they don’t know to give respect to women”, he added.

    ‘Jai Siya Ram’, translates from Hindi to ‘glory to Sita and Lord Ram’ while ‘Jai Shri Ram’ denotes ‘hail Lord Ram’.

    The TMC youth wing chief also alleged that women are tortured in BJP-ruled states like Gujarat and UP.

    “See the way the saffron party showed disrespect to Mamata Banerjee at the birth anniversary celebrations of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose at Victoria Memorial in the city”, he said.

    He claimed that BJP leaders coming from north India are a “bunch of outsiders” who are not aware of the culture of Bengal, and spreading fake news to confuse people.

    “Let me say our chief minister Mamata Banerjee will stand there like Maa Durga to fight against the BJP which has weapons like CBI and ED”, he said.

    Banerjee claimed that the saffron party is trying to influence farmers of the state by promising to provide Rs 18,000 in their accounts, if elected to power, but “Bengal will never sell its spine to the BJP”.

    The BJP has been saying that the saffron party, if voted to power in the state, will ensure that each farmer of the state gets Rs 18,000 in arrears under the PM-KISAN scheme.

    The TMC MP from Diamond Harbour said, West Bengal is the only state where people are getting free ration and education.

    “Let me say the BJP should first think of Gujarat, UP and other states. No need to worry about Bengal. Outsiders will not rule Bengal,” Banerjee said.

  • RJD delegation meets TMC’s Abhishek Banerjee on Bengal polls

    By PTI
    KOLKATA: An RJD delegation met senior TMC leader Abhishek Banerjee in Kolkata on Monday over the upcoming assembly elections in West Bengal.

    Addressing the press, RJD’s principal general secretary Abdul Bari Siddiqui said that a decision to form an alliance with a non-BJP secular party for the elections in West Bengal will be taken by its central leadership.

    The meeting with Banerjee was a part of the RJD’s objective to defeat the “communal forces”, he said.

    RJD’s national general secretary Shyam Razak was also present in the meeting along with Siddiqui.

    There is nothing to share about the talks at this point, Siddiqui told reporters.

    He said the RJD was open to discussions about an alliance with other non-BJP parties as well.

    “TMC is BJP’s biggest enemy, hence we held discussions with TMC, but only to assess the situation at present. We will send the feedback to our central leadership,” he said.

    Replying to a question on whether the party would hold talks with the opposition CPI(M), Siddiqui said, “If they invite us today we will turn up as soon as possible, say tomorrow.”

    RJD, the main opposition party of Bihar, had said on Sunday that it is exploring the possibility of contesting some seats on the Bengal-Bihar border in the upcoming assembly elections, likely in April-May.

    “All the secular and democratic forces should join hands to fight against the BJP,” Siddiqui said.

    RJD had an MLA in the Bengal assembly between 2006 and 2011 during the Left Front rule.

  • Those saying Abhishek will be next Bengal CM are trying to create confusion: Trinamool hits back at Shah

    By PTI
    KOLKATA: The Trinamool Congress said on Sunday that Mamata Banerjee will be the chief minister of West Bengal for the third time when the party is voted to power, asserting that those suggesting her nephew Abhishek Banerjee will be appointed to the top post are trying to create confusion.

    Speaking to reporters, senior TMC MP and spokesperson Saugata Roy said that the party has made it clear time and again that it is contesting the upcoming elections with Banerjee as the chief ministerial face.

    “Everyone knows that Mamata Banerjee will be our chief minister for the third time. How can Amit Shah make such a claim? There has been no talk in the party to appoint Abhishek as the future CM. Such claims are only aimed to create confusion,” Roy said.

    Addressing a BJP rally in Howrah virtually, Shah claimed that the agenda of the TMC dispensation is to make Banerjee’s nephew the next chief minister of the state.

    Hitting out at BJP leader Rajib Banerjee, Roy said that people like him are certainly “traitors” as they enjoyed every benefit of staying in power and deserted the party just before the elections.

    Rajib, who switched over to the BJP from TMC on Saturday, told the rally in Howrah that the more the leaders who changed sides are called traitors, the more they will get people’s support.

    Speaking at a press conference, TMC leader and state minister Chandrima Bhattacharya said that leaders who are coming to the state ahead of the elections to “mislead the people” are justly called “outsiders”, in an apparent reference to Shah.

    She said people of different communities living in the state are not branded “outsiders” by her party, but those coming to the state for making false claims.

    Without naming anyone, Bhattacharya said MPs from Uttar Pradesh, “an unemployed” politician from Madhya Pradesh, a leader from Gujarat are coming to the state before the polls to mislead the people.

  • Shame that BJP leaders sung national anthem ‘incorrectly’: Trinamool Congress

    By PTI
    KOLKATA: Trinamool Youth Congress president Abhishek Banerjee on Sunday claimed that BJP leaders have sung the national anthem incorrectly at a public rally in Howrah, a charge denied by the saffron party.

    Taking to Twitter, the TMC MP said that “those preaching patriotism and nationalism cannot even sing the national anthem correctly”. “This is the party which claims to uphold India’s honour and pride! SHAMEFUL! Will @narendramodi @AmitShah @BJP4India apologise for this ‘Anti-National’ Act?” he wrote.

    Those preaching about Patriotism & Nationalism can’t even sing our National Anthem correctly.This is the party which claims to uphold India’s honour and pride! SHAMEFUL!Will @narendramodi @AmitShah @BJP4India apologise for this “Anti-National” Act?#BJPInsultsNationalAnthem pic.twitter.com/fgdCEMPisk
    — Abhishek Banerjee (@abhishekaitc) January 31, 2021

    TMC secretary general and West Bengal education minister Partha Chatterjee also stated in a tweet that the BJP has disrespected the national anthem. “The whole country is astonished at this shameful act,” he posted on the microblogging site.

    The Left Front also slammed the saffron camp over the incident. CPM politburo member Md Salim said it is an irony that those who cannot sing the national anthem properly give sermons on nationalism.

    However, BJP leader Shamik Bhattacharya rubbished the allegations and said that the TMC was “indulging in politics over the national anthem, just like it did over Lord Ram and Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose”. He said that it isn’t possible that so many senior leaders of the saffron party, including ministers, would together sing the national anthem wrong. “People will reject such politics,” he added.

  • Abhishek Banerjee exposes letter accusing Suvendu Adhikari of extorting Rs 6 cr from chit fund agency

    Express News Service
    KOLKATA: Retaliating BJP’s relentless attack calling him “Tolabaj Bhaipo” (extortionist nephew), TMC MP Abhishek Banerjee on Sunday exposed a letter written by Sudipta Sen, the Saradha group promoter presently in jail, in a public rally in South 24 Parganas. Abhishek accused former Trinamool Congress strongman Suvendu Adhikari, who joined the BJP, of extorting Rs 6 crore from the chit fund agency.

    Brandishing the two-page letter, the Diamond Harbour MP threw a challenge to Suvendu asking him to prove his allegation false. “You (Suvendu) do not have guts to utter my name. You talk in the passive voice. I am uttering your name and saying you are an extortionist. You not only took Rs 6 crore from Sudipta Sen, but also blackmailed him. In the letter, is clearly written then the day before he (Sen) went at large, you visited his office and took money from him,’’ alleged Abhishek.

    ALSO READ | Will quit if Centre brings law allowing only one member of family in politics: Mamata’s nephew

    Bengal BJP had inducted Mamata’s once-trusted lieutenant Suvendu in the party last month eyeing 39 Assembly seats in Junglemahal. Since then, the saffron camp has been organising regular rallies and roadshows projecting Suvendu as a key tool to sharpen attack on the ruling party on “extortionist nephew” issue.

    Suvendu’s speech in all the rallies since his defection is aimed to portray Abhishek’s image as an extortionist nephew. He also raised a slogan—Tolabaj Bhaipo Hatao, Bengla Bachao (reject extortionist nephew, save Bengal).  

    BJP’s high-command, including Union Home minister Amit Shah and national president JP Nadda, never missed opportunity to raise the issue whenever they visited Bengal and addressed rallies in the recent past.

    Abhishek’s disclosure of Sen’s letter on Sunday is said to be an effort to blunt the attack lashed out buy Suvendu and other BJP functionaries. “You were also seen (in Narada sting operation) receiving money from a person using a towel as a shield and promised him to fix up an appointment with me. I should file a defamation case against you,’’ Abhishek hit out at the turncoat.

    Sen, presently in Presidency jail in connection with the multi-crore scam, wrote the letter addressing Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Mamata on December 1 naming Suvendu and others.

  • Will quit if Centre brings law allowing only one member of family in politics: Mamata’s nephew

    Banerjee said he will publicly hang himself if the corruption charges levelled against him are proved to be true.

  • TMC MP Abhishek Banerjee holds central government responsible for hike in petrol, diesel prices

    By PTI
    KOLKATA: TMC youth wing President Abhishek Banerjee on Saturday squarely blamed the BJP government at the Centre for the hike in petrol and diesel prices, and said decisions taken by the country’s ruling dispensation have been ruining people’s lives.

    He claimed that the increase in excise duty on petrol and diesel over the last years is one of the major reasons for the hike in prices.

    Petrol and diesel rates were hiked on Thursday, the second straight day of such increase that took the prices to new highs.

    “Doesn’t @BJP4India-led Central Govt have anything better to do than ruin people’s lives? What POSSIBLY can be the explanation by @narendramodi Ji for increasing the excise duty on petrol & diesel ever since they came to power by 566% & 704%, respectively?!” the Diamond Harbour MP tweeted.

    Rates were hiked on Wednesday after a five-day hiatus.

    State-owned fuel retailers — Indian Oil Corporation Ltd (IOC), Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL) — had on January 6 resumed daily price revision after nearly a month-long gap.

  • Swami Vivekananda’s land will never allow BJP’s ‘hate politics’ to triumph: Abhishek Banerjee

    By PTI
    .KOLKATA: Senior TMC leader Abhishek Banerjee Tuesday mocked the BJP for claiming to be a follower of Swami Vivekananda and said the people of the state will never allow “hate politics” of the saffron camp to triumph in Bengal, where the monk was born in 1863.

    The BJP has no right to celebrate Swamiji’s birthday, the Trinamool Congress MP from Diamond Harbour said while addressing a rally in south Kolkata.

    “West Bengal, which is the birthplace Swami Vivekananda, has no place for hate politics imported from Gujarat”, he said.

    The 158th birth anniversary of the monk, a key figure who had introduced Indian philosophies of Vedanta and Yoga to the western world and established the Ramakrishna Math and the Ramakrishna Mission, is being celebrated on Tuesday.

    Calling the BJP as “fake Ram Bhakts”, he accused the saffron party of “following the principles of Nathuram Godse who had assassinated Mahatma Gandhi”.

    “They claim to be followers of Lord Ram. They are not followers of Ram, they are followers of Nathuram (Godse). They are followers of divisive politics,” he said.

    Abhishek Banerjee is Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s nephew.

    “I don’t want to politicise today’s event. But, I must say one thing that a political party is trying to portray itself to be a follower of Swami Vivekananda. I want to tell BJP members that Swamiji never preached hate politics and communalism, which is the basis of the saffron party,” he said.

    Accusing the BJP of insulting icons of Bengal such as Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore and Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar, Banerjee said, none of them propagated pitting one religion against other, like the BJP.

    “The people of Bengal and the land of Vivekananda, which is his birthplace, will reject the hate politics practiced by the saffron party.”

    “The BJP has passed the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) according to which a person will get citizenship based on religion. Did Swamiji ever say that citizenship should be granted after determining one’s religion?” the MP asked.

    According to the CAA, members of Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi, and Christian communities who have come from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan till December 31, 2014, facing religious persecution there will not be treated as illegal immigrants but given Indian citizenship.

    The Trinamool Youth Congress, led by Abhishek Banerjee, took out a five-km long rally in the city on Tuesday commemorating the birth anniversary of the 19th-century monk.

    The TMC and its youth wing also took out rallies in various parts of the state.

    The monk’s birth anniversary has triggered a war of political one-upmanship between the TMC and the BJP, with the saffron party also lining up several programs across the state to celebrate the day.