In a sharp escalation of political hostilities, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday launched a direct and personal attack on Union Home Minister Amit Shah, demanding his immediate resignation. The fiery counterattack came minutes after Shah accused the Trinamool Congress government of encouraging cross-border infiltration for vote bank politics.
A Point-by-Point Rebuttal on Security
Addressing a public rally in Barjora town of Bankura district, Banerjee turned the tables on the Home Minister, questioning his handling of national security. She challenged Shah's insinuation that infiltrators were only a problem in Bengal by referencing recent attacks elsewhere in the country. "If infiltrators exist only in Bengal and nowhere else, then who carried out the Pahalgam attack? Who was responsible for the blast in Delhi?" Banerjee demanded. She further pressed, "Are infiltrators present nowhere except Bengal? Or was it you who did it?"
Banerjee emphatically stated that border management is the direct responsibility of the Union Home Ministry. "Which ministry is responsible for infiltration? I gave land wherever required. First do your job there," she retorted. She also accused Border Security Force (BSF) units of intimidating villagers after their jurisdiction was expanded in border areas.
Invoking Mythology and Alleging Electoral Fraud
The Bengal CM repeatedly referred to Amit Shah as "Dushasan," the Mahabharata character symbolising misrule and adharma. "A person representing misrule has arrived in WB. You are the home minister of the country. You must resign," she declared, adding, "Till my last breath, I will fight these Dushasans."
Banerjee also trained her guns on the Election Commission, calling its Summary Revision of electoral rolls a "huge scam." She made a serious allegation that a member of the BJP's IT cell was "sitting inside Delhi's EC office" and deleting names while posing as an electoral officer.
Responding to Corruption Charges
When addressing the corruption charges levelled against her government, Banerjee defended her administration's record. She asserted that her government has acted against any wrongdoing and pointedly asked whether those arrested in connection with various cases were being kept in jail, implying a political bias in enforcement.
The public rally in western Bengal thus became the stage for a no-holds-barred political confrontation, setting the tone for the upcoming electoral battles in the state. Banerjee's direct call for the Home Minister's resignation marks a significant intensification in the war of words between the Trinamool Congress and the BJP at the national level.
