“Mamata Banerjee gets angry at ”Jai Shri Ram” slogan, (but) she will herself begin chanting it by the time assembly polls are over,” Mr Shah said.
Union minister Amit Shah, at a rally in north Bengal’s Cooch Behar today, said the coming assembly elections in Bengal will be a fight between Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “development model” and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s “destruction model”. The saffron party is eying to draw the big Bengal prize in the coming round of assembly elections. Mr Shah has earlier said the party will win 200 of the state’s 294 seats.
Referring to the “Jai Shri Ram slogan issue” that has been a flashpoint in the state since January, Mr Shah said: “If ”Jai Shri Ram” is not chanted in India, will it be raised in Pakistan? Mamata Banerjee gets angry at ”Jai Shri Ram” slogan, (but) she will herself begin chanting it by the time assembly polls are over.”
Earlier in January, at a programme attended by Prime Minister Modi, Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee looked visibly upset after “Jai Shri Ram” slogans were raised as she began her address. Ms Banerjee had refused to continue with her speech after some people from back rows shouted the slogan.
Though PM Modi had kept silence on the issue back then, he touched the topic last week.
“Bengal loves football. So let me speak in that language. Trinamool has made many fouls, one after the other. The foul of misgovernance, attacks on opposition leaders, theft of money… The people of Bengal are watching. Bengal will soon show Trinamool the Ram card,” the Prime Minister said at a function in Haldia.
Amit Shah, hitting out at Ms Banerjee’s government on the issue of development, said while PM Modi’s government works for “jan kalyan” (public welfare), Mamata Banerjee works for “bhatija kalyan” — welfare of her nephew Abhishek Banerjee. The comments came in reference to one of the hot button issues that is said to have propelled a chunk of Trinamool leaders towards the BJP.
“TMC goons cannot stall the BJP’s march to power in West Bengal. No ‘Mai ka Laal’ (anyone at all) can stop the BJP in Bengal,” the union home minister said.
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