BJP president JP Nadda’s convoy was attacked with bricks and stones near Kolkata and many cars were damaged. BJP accused Mamata Banerjee government that their leaders were also injured in the attack. Home Minister Amit Shah has asked for a report on what he called “sponsored violence” and said Bengal’s ruling Trinamool Congress would have to answer to the people of the state. No one knows its election gimmick or Bengal really hates these BJP leaders? The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has launched the campaign for the 2021 West Bengal Assembly elections asserting that BJP will come to power with two-thirds majority in the state. Nadda and Shah’s confidence must have its base in the slogans raised ahead of the rally he addressed in Kolkata where his partymen imported the infamous, criminal war cry of Delhi: goli maro saalon ko (shoot those traitors). It’s not long ago that the nation witnessed the impact of the inflammable slogan, introduced by the party’s leader in the national capital, Kapil Mishra, directed against the people assembled at Shaheen Bagh on a peaceful protest against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act. Many BJP leaders supported his voice, and thereafter he was provided with Y security. This shows that the BJP is always looking for inciting communal riots. Anurag Thakur and Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath also made use of the same language with impunity. They were equally venomous in Hyderabad too; somehow they gained seats but could not register their win. After seeing Delhi riots where more than 40 people have lost their lives and hundreds injured in the riots that lasted three days. Thousands have been rendered homeless. After seeing so much provocation and hate, people of other states are hardly in a mood to buy a communal split. It’s quite depressing that the ruling party at the Centre, which got a decisive mandate in the Lok Sabha elections held hardly a year ago, has chosen to rely on the slogan that brought the national capital into chaos to another state. It has steadily refused to act against such leaders who went on giving provocative speeches; it has chosen to repeat the strategy in a crucial border state to romp home at the hosting instead. Narendra Modi never misses an opportunity to preach to the nation his pet theme: Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas. He insists on taking everyone along. Even Shah had publicly admitted provocative and divisive slogans may have hurt the party’s chances to win the Delhi election. But they did not fail to apply the same logic at Hyderabad, and something in the line they are on it in Bengal. While the sermons go one way, the party and its karyakartas have no qualms in taking an extremely divisive path for a possible go at power in the state which is yet to toe the saffron line.
A dramatic video shared online shows a car, said to be part of the BJP chief’s convoy, being attacked with bricks and the windscreen and windows shattering. The Trinamool, however, accused the BJP of “intentional provocation” and attempting to stir trouble and malign the state government in the run-up to polls next year. The BJP leaders were travelling to Diamond Harbour in South 24 Parganas near Kolkata when the attack took place around 12 noon. Diamond Harbour is the parliamentary constituency of Trinamool MP Abhishek Banerjee, the nephew of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. Some BJP workers on motorcycles were attacked with sticks. Several media vehicles were also hit with stones. Reports suggest the attack was the result of the BJP convoy passing an area at the same time as a Trinamool rally. Responding to the allegations, Bengal Minister Subrata Mukherjee said the incident was “created” and the BJP was trying to disrupt peace as part of its political agenda. Which is quite possible, you must recollect the attacks on Arvind Kejriwal. Nadda is doing provocative things. If someone has done something wrong, if they are TMC cadres, they should be punished.
The majority of Bengalis have a secular and liberal mentality. This has happened in a course of around 100 years. Bengal BJP cannot turn Bengal into a conservative state overnight. To increase its numbers, BJP cannot rely on only conservatives. But they have to rely on leaders who are not making profits under the TMC regime. So BJP cannot stick to its traditional strategy in Bengal. BJP needs patience and something lucrative to offer Bengal that communal violence. The choice between secular Mamata and majoritarian communal BJP yields no vanquisher. Mamata’s party, after coming to power, got involved with the architects of Sarada and Rose Valley chit fund scam.
BJP leaders also involved themselves in chit funds scam in other States. The main TMC beneficiary of Sarada scam Mukul Roy joined BJP in Bengal. BJP Government is enforcing media blackout on the 45,000 crore telecom scam and stonewalling CBI inquiry on Rafale deal. Amit Shah’s son’s fortune increased dramatically in a year and in response they slapped a defamation case for reporting. When Modi was in power in Gujarat his ministers got involved in Gujarat Cooperative Bank scam. The Vyapam scam of Madhya Pradesh among others comes to mind also. As far as scams are concerned, TMC and BJP are no different. Mamata’s party has MPs and MLA’s who are accused of criminal activities and have criminal cases against them. BJP has the highest number of MP’s with criminal charges. The biggest question at this hour is, how does BJP provide a clean alternative to TMC?
