West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday accused Union Home Minister Amit Shah of hatching a conspiracy to harass TMC leaders ahead of the assembly elections in the state and wondered whether the Election Commission is working as per his instructions.
Claiming that Shah is getting "frustrated" by "poor turnout" at his rallies, Banerjee also alleged that the BJP is plotting conspiracies to kill her as her security director Vivek Sahay was removed by the Election Commission after she sustained injuries last week in Purba Medinipur's Nandigram.
Referring to the alleged "attack" on her in Nandigram, Banerjee said no one will stop her from taking forward her battle against the BJP.
"Amit Shah is getting frustrated as there is a poor turnout at his rallies. Instead of running the country, he is sitting in Kolkata and hatching a conspiracy to harass TMC leaders. What do they want? Do they want to kill me? Do they think that they will win this election by killing me? They are wrong," she said while addressing a rally here.
Banerjee also wondered whether the Election Commission has lost its independence, and alleged that the poll panel is working as per Shah's instructions
"Is Amit Shah running the EC? He is giving instructions to the EC. What happened to their independence? My director, security (Vivek Sahay) was removed (by EC) as per his instructions," she alleged.
Banerjee claimed Shah, who came back to Kolkata last night from Guwahati and held a series of meetings with the BJP's state leaders, was "hatching conspiracy as he has understood after witnessing poor turnout at his rallies that the saffron party is still miles away from winning the assembly elections".
(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
You’ve reached your limit of {{free_limit}} free articles this month.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
Already subscribed? Log in
Subscribe to read the full story →
Smart Quarterly
₹900
3 Months
₹300/Month
Smart Essential
₹2,700
1 Year
₹225/Month
Super Saver
₹3,900
2 Years
₹162/Month
Renews automatically, cancel anytime
Here’s what’s included in our digital subscription plans
Exclusive premium stories online
Over 30 premium stories daily, handpicked by our editors


Complimentary Access to The New York Times
News, Games, Cooking, Audio, Wirecutter & The Athletic
Business Standard Epaper
Digital replica of our daily newspaper — with options to read, save, and share


Curated Newsletters
Insights on markets, finance, politics, tech, and more delivered to your inbox
Market Analysis & Investment Insights
In-depth market analysis & insights with access to The Smart Investor


Archives
Repository of articles and publications dating back to 1997
Ad-free Reading
Uninterrupted reading experience with no advertisements


Seamless Access Across All Devices
Access Business Standard across devices — mobile, tablet, or PC, via web or app
)