In a sharp political counterattack, Bharatiya Janata Party's national spokesperson and Puri MP, Sambit Patra, on Wednesday strongly rebutted West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's controversial remarks about Union Home Minister Amit Shah's recent visit to Kolkata. Patra labeled the comments a direct threat not just to the Home Minister, but to every citizen of India.
Mamata Banerjee's "Politics of Courtesy" Remark Sparks Row
The controversy erupted after Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, while addressing a public meeting in Bankura district, commented on Amit Shah's stay in Kolkata. She stated that the Home Minister was "hiding inside a hotel" and was "lucky" that she allowed him to step out, attributing this to her party's "politics of courtesy." This statement quickly became the center of a major political storm, drawing fierce criticism from the BJP camp.
Patra's Fierce Rebuttal: A Threat to Every Indian
Addressing media persons in Bhubaneswar, Sambit Patra launched a scathing attack on the Bengal Chief Minister. He asserted that issuing such a statement to the country's Home Minister, ostensibly to shield infiltrators, amounted to a threat to every Indian. "Mamata Banerjee threatened the Home Minister of India in words which can't even be thought of," Patra said, echoing her words. "Saying that you are hiding in a hotel and if I don't want, you can't step out. You are lucky that I allowed you to step out... It's a threat to every Indian."
Patra connected this incident to past political violence in the state, recalling the alleged attack on BJP president J.P. Nadda's cavalcade in Bengal, which he claimed was done at Mamata Banerjee's behest. He accused the Chief Minister of using infiltrators to unleash violence and stated that her latest comments reflected the alarming direction in which Bengal was headed under her rule.
Broader Allegations of Corruption and Fear of Truth
The BJP leader further elaborated on the context of Amit Shah's press conference in Kolkata on Tuesday. Patra claimed that Shah's press meet exposed the truth about corruption, infiltration, and the non-provision of land for fencing along the border in Bengal. He alleged that the Trinamool Congress government, along with its "goons," had ruined the state.
Patra also pointed to the continuous violence against BJP workers and the opposition to removing infiltrators' names from voter lists as clear evidence that the TMC feared the truth coming out. Concluding with a confident prediction, the Puri MP declared, "Bengal wants change. BJP would form govt with a two-thirds majority." This exchange marks yet another intense chapter in the bitter political rivalry between the BJP and the TMC in the lead-up to significant electoral battles in the region.
