Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday claimed that women suffered the most during the 15-year rule of the Trinamool Congress (TMC) as he campaigned a day before the final day of campaigning ahead of the second and final phase of the West Bengal Assembly elections on April 29.
“I can see maximum enthusiasm among the women present here as they have suffered the most during the TMC’s 15-year rule. The record turnout in the first phase of polling has crushed the pride of the TMC. The second phase will ensure the formation of a BJP government. Bengal needs a voice from every one of you,” Modi said at Thakurnagar in North 24 Parganas district.
Women have been the mainstay of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s support base due to her popular welfare programmes, especially Lakshmir Bhandar, which provides a monthly assistance of Rs. $1500 (general category) and $1700 (Scheduled Castes and Tribes).
Modi promised free rice which he said would help women save $7,000 to 10,000 annually if the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is voted to power. “TMC is providing arsenic contaminated water. BJP will provide clean drinking water and $80,000 for solar power plants in homes. The banks will give each sister a $Mudra loan of 20,000 to start a business. Modi said that Modi will be the guarantor of the loan.
He included the promises made to women voters in the BJP’s election manifesto. “The Bangladesh Bharatiya Janata Party announced an annual aid of Rs $“36 lakh for all women and 33% reservation in government jobs,” he said, four days before 142 of the 294 assembly seats go to the polls in seven districts, including Kolkata, the TMC’s stronghold since it came to power in 2011.
The average Muslim population in the seven districts of South Bengal is about 25. The BJP failed to win any seat in four of the seven districts — South 24 Parganas (31 seats), Kolkata (11 seats), East Burdwan (16 seats), and Howrah (18 seats) — in the 2021 elections.
On April 23, polling was held for 152 seats in 16 districts, recording a turnout of 92.35%. The BJP won 59 of these seats in 2021. The BJP said it would win 110 of these seats in 2026. The TMC claimed it would win at least 100 of the 152 seats.
On Sunday, Modi also addressed the Dalit Matua community for the first time in these elections, after many of them were removed as voters as part of the Special Intensive Review (SIR) of the electoral roll.
The Matua, part of the large Namasudra Dalit community, came as refugees from East Pakistan after the 1947 partition and after the creation of Bangladesh in 1971. They have a strong presence in North 24 Parganas district, the largest district in Bengal (33 seats), and in Nadia (17 seats).
The Matua family is believed to have supported the BJP in the Lok Sabha and Assembly elections since 2019, as they were guaranteed citizenship under the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA). Many of them have not yet obtained citizenship despite filling out online forms.
Modi said that Jan Sangh founder Shyama Prasad Mukherjee is the official spokesperson for all these refugees. “The BJP carries this legacy, which is why the CAA was introduced. Matua Namasudras and all other refugees will get citizenship, permanent address and all the documents that other citizens get. This is Modi’s guarantee. Those who think of voting for TMC will wound the soul of their ancestors,” he said.
“I swear that all the infiltrators living here with fake documents provided by TMC will be evicted if they do not leave before the election results are announced on May 4,” Modi said before addressing another rally at Haripal in Hooghly district.
TMC Rajya Sabha member Mamata Bala Thakur, who heads a faction of the Matua Mahasangha, said the BJP has repeatedly made false promises to them. “The SIR exercise will identify Muslim infiltrators, but the number of matuas delisted in several districts is around 30,000,” she claimed.
In Nadia district bordering Bangladesh, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said the TMC had been “serving biryani” to infiltrators all these years, while Modi was giving befitting response to terror attacks. He added: “After May 5, every infiltrator will be identified and returned.”
The TMC has repeatedly responded to Shah’s claims about the alleged infiltration, pointing out that central forces are responsible for guarding the border.
In Tehata, Shah assured garlic farmers that they would get a fair price if the BJP came to power. “Garlic is sold at a price $200 kilos all over the country, but here they sell it $12 Because Chinese garlic was pushed into the market. The BJP will stop such imports, he said.
