LS polls a fight between dictatorship, democracy: TMC leader

The Trinamool Congress on Sunday hit back at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his remarks that people have to chose between a 'majboor' (helpless) or a 'majboot' (strong) government in the general elections, and said the 2019 Lok Sabha polls would be a fight between dictatorship and democracy.

Criticising Modi for his assertion at the BJP national convention in New Delhi on Saturday, senior TMC leader Abhishek Banerjee wondered whether the saffron party-led NDA government from 1999-2004 or various coalition governments that it was a part of were "majboot" or "majboor".

"I want to ask them whether the BJP-led NDA government of Atal Bihari Vajpayee from 1999-2004 was a strong government or a helpless one? I would like to ask them whether the governments they had formed in Kashmir with the PDP or in the north eastern states, were strong or helpless," Banerjee said.

The national president of All India Trinamool Youth Congress and the nephew of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, was speaking at a rally here.

"The upcoming Lok Sabha elections will be fight between an authoritarian rule, and fight to save democracy and constitution of this country," he said.

At the BJP national convention, the prime minister had said that the opposition parties were coming together as they wanted to form a "majboor" government to promote nepotism and corruption, whereas the saffron party wanted a "majboot" dispensation for an all-round development of the country.

Several allies have deserted the BJP-led NDA in the last four-and-a-half-years, the TMC MP said.

"The BJP should stop lecturing us and others on dynasty politics when several top leaders of their party have sons and daughters as MPs and MLAs... The TMC doesn't believe in dynasty politics. Those who are efficient get elected," he added.