Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday said that no Hindu refugee will lose his citizenship, while escalating his attack on West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee over the infiltration issue, saying that if she had not opposed the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), every Hindu refugee from Bangladesh would have been granted citizenship by now.
Launching the BJP’s “Parivartan Yatra” (march for change) from Mathurapur in South 24 Parganas district in the eastern state ahead of the crucial assembly polls, Shah made a series of promises, including implementing the 7th Pay Commission for state government employees within 45 days of the BJP coming to power, and filling up all vacant government posts by December.
“If Mamata Banerjee had not opposed the CAA, every Hindu refugee from Bangladesh would have got citizenship by now. But I have come to tell all Hindu refugees that there is no need to worry. The BJP government is here for you. No refugee will lose his citizenship,” he said.
Shah criticized the Banerjee-led TMC government over the infiltration issue, saying infiltrators will be removed from West Bengal once the BJP comes to power, pointing out that at present only names are being included in the electoral rolls as part of the ongoing Special Intensive Review (SIR).
Read also: Amit Shah vows to crack down on infiltrators, confident of BJP’s victory in West Bengal
“At the moment, only names are being deleted from the voter lists and Mamata Didi is tensed. Once the BJP forms the government, we will identify and remove every infiltrator from Bengal,” he said.
Commenting on the attack by CM Banerjee, who is also TMC chief, Shah said: “Didi has done nothing but appease infiltrators from Bangladesh. We have created Ram Mandir Corridor, Kashi Viswanath Corridor and Mahakal Corridor. You (Banerjee) have done nothing all this time and now you are building temples. I welcome it. But what is the purpose of Babri Masjid?”
He was referring to a Babri Masjid-type mosque that had stopped the construction of the legislator Humayun Kabir in Murshidabad.
“Humayun Kabir and Mamata Didi are part of the same coin. Mamata Banerjee came up with the idea of ousting Kabir and making him build the mosque. Both Hindus and Muslims have realized what kind of person Mamata Banerjee is,” Shah claimed.
Read also: PM Modi takes aim at ‘infiltrators’ in Bengal and targets Mamata Banerjee’s TMC
He also accused the Transitional Military Council of practicing dynastic politics.
“Mamata Banerjee is only worried about Abhishek Banerjee. She wants to make him chief minister. This is their practice,” Shah said, naming some leaders from other opposition parties, including the Congress and the DMK.
The Home Minister also made a series of promises to state government employees and job seekers.
“Government employees across India are receiving salaries recommended by the Seventh Pay Commission. Only Bengal government employees are still under the Sixth Pay Commission. If you help us win, the Seventh Pay Commission will be implemented here in 45 days,” Shah said. “We will fill all the vacant posts within two months and restore the posts for which recruitments have been stopped. Young people have waited long years to get jobs and many of them have crossed the age limit. They will get a five-year break. The process will start by December 26.”
The BJP launched the first of four Parivartan Yatras on Sunday. Five more were released on Monday. Besides Shah, Defense Minister Rajnath Singh, Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and BJP national president Nitin Nabin addressed rallies in different parts of Bengal on Monday.
“By Parivartan we do not mean changing the Prime Minister. This task will be done by the people. Our concept of change means expelling corruption and infiltrators. Shouldn’t our borders be protected? Shouldn’t women be safe and law and order restored?” Shah said.
“The communists have put pressure on Bengal and the TMC has pushed it into the dungeon of poverty. Now it is time to build Sonar Bengala (Golden Bengal) as envisioned by Rabindranath Tagore. Can Mamata Banerjee and Bhaibu (his nephew) do it?” Shah said, in an apparent criticism of TMC National General Secretary Abhishek Banerjee.
Shah had raised the issue of infiltration during his recent visit to Bihar, while targeting the West Bengal government.
Political observer Rajesh Kumar said Shah’s visits to Kishanganj (Bihar) and South 24 Parganas fit within the framework of a larger national campaign. “The BJP is trying to reframe Bangladeshi elections around security and identity rather than welfare and governance. Whether this strategy has an impact on border constituencies will depend on how voters weigh local issues against national narratives.”
In his address at the Parivartan Yatra in Howrah, Rajnath Singh also ratcheted up the BJP’s rhetoric of ‘infiltration’. “Why is Mamata Banerjee not taking action against intruders. Why are the borders not secure?” Singh said.
Responding to Shah, TMC state general secretary Kunal Ghosh said: “Shah seemed desperate as he knows very well that Mamata Banerjee will not only return to power but will break CPI leader Jyoti Basu’s record.”
Basu became the Chief Minister of Bengal in 1977 and served for 23 years before stepping down in 2000. Banerjee, on the other hand, is completing her third five-year term.
(With inputs from Sanjeev K Jha in New Delhi)
