Trinamool rule ruining Bengal: Amit Shah

In a scathing attack on West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, BJP President Amit Shah on Monday said her government has ruined the state economically and culturally, and vowed to build a "Sonar Bangla" ("Golden Bengal") if the safforn party is voted to power in the state.

He also accused the state's ruling Trinamool Congress of creating obstacles in Durga Puja celebrations, even as Prime Minister Narendra Modi had "recommended Bengal's Durga Puja celebrations be included in the Unesco World Heritage list".

Addressing an election rally here, Shah alleged that "wealth of members of Banerjee's family, party MPs, MLAs and leaders have multiplied manifold in recent years, while the state and its people have been "ruining economically". He said the Trinamool supremo must explain "what she has done for the state."

"Bengal, once led the country in terms of culture and Mamata didi's government destroyed that picture and instead introduced rule of mafias and syndicates. The BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi wants to make Bengal, Sonar Bangla, by defeating the Mamata Banerjee government which has ruined the state economically," Shah said.

The state had earlier been led to economic ruin by the previous Left Front regime, he added.

"PM recommended Bengal's Durga puja celebrations be included in the Unesco World Heritage list. Tell me, whether the Durga Puja should be listed in the Unesco World Heritage list or not. You must say whether you should have freedom to organise Durga Pujas or not. This will happen only when, Mamata's government is removed from power," Shah said .

The Sangeet Natak Akademy, an autonomous body under the Union Culture Ministry, had announced the Durga Puja, which is celebrated in many parts of the country, as India's official nomination for the Unesco's 2020 list of significant cultural institutions around the world.

The state government had also prepared a dossier to pitch for getting the Unesco tag for the Durga Puja festival.

Shah accused the Trinamool Congress government of creating obstacles not only for Durga Pujas, but also for celebrations of other festivals like Saraswati and Laxmi Pujas, Ram Navami and Bijoya Dashami.

He alleged that violence between communities has been on the rise in the state after Trinammol had come to power.

Shah said incidents of booths capturing and poll violence were reported only from Bengal during the first two phases of the ongoing Lok Sabha elections.

He also said the BJP had emerged as the only party which could throw infiltrators out of the country, while others, including Trinamool and the Left parties are "helping them for their vote bank politics".

"If the BJP wins at least 23 Lok Sabha seats, the Modi goverenment would "abolish syndicate raj from the state within 90 days", he added.

--IANS

bdc/bc