PM's remarks on opposition reflect panic of BJP following Patna meet: TMC

The Trinamool Congress on Tuesday hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, claiming that his comments on the opposition reflect the panic that has gripped the saffron camp after the non-BJP parties' successful meeting in Patna last week.

While addressing a gathering of party workers in Bhopal on Tuesday, Modi attacked opposition parties over corruption, terming their Patna conclave as a mere "photo-op".

Last week, leaders of over a dozen parties, some of them from far-off Jammu and Kashmir and Tamil Nadu, and several bitter rivals like the Congress, Aam Aadmi Party, Trinamool Congress, and the Left, attended the conclave hosted by Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and agreed to build on the momentum at the next meeting proposed in Shimla in July.

TMC spokesperson Kunal Ghosh said, "We have heard Prime Minister Narendra Modi talking about the opposition camp. A panic has set in in the BJP camp after the successful opposition meeting in Patna, as it can sense imminent defeat.

The PM alleged that the opposition parties can only "guarantee" corruption, and accused them of being involved in scams worth "at least Rs 20 lakh crore."

The BJP talks about corruption in the opposition camp, but what about the corrupt leaders that the BJP had inducted in its fold in every state, including West Bengal," Ghosh said.

He said the allegations of corruption levelled by the BJP sound like a broken record being played repeatedly as "those, who were once accused of being involved in Narada and Saradha scams by the saffron camp, are now holding senior positions in the West Bengal BJP".

"The entire top brass of the BJP had levelled these allegations during the 2021 assembly polls. We have seen how the saffron camp was defeated. The people have rejected the allegations," he said.

Despite the BJP's high-octane campaign in 2021 assembly polls, the TMC steamrolled to power for the third consecutive term in the state by winning 213 of the 292 seats, while the BJP bagged 77 seats.

Reacting to PM Modi's comment that the opposition is using the issue of the Uniform Civil Code to mislead and provoke the Muslim community, Ghosh said, The people of this country are well aware which party tried to push CAA and NRC, and which party was involved in instigating riots in the country."

The West Bengal BJP backed the claims of the prime minister.

"The entire country knows about the TMC's corruption. And regarding opposition unity, we saw similar efforts in 2019 and 2014 and also the results. The people of this country trust the BJP when it comes to good governance and national security," BJP state president Sukanta Majumdar said.