TMC leader Abhishek Banerjee.
Credit: PTI Photo
Kolkata: TMC leader Abhishek Banerjee on Saturday alleged that the opposition BJP, in connivance with former party leader Humayun Kabir, might have hatched a conspiracy to foment violence at Beldanga in West Bengal’s Murshidabad district, and appealed to residents to maintain peace and harmony.
The TMC national general secretary was addressing a rally after a roadshow in Baharampur, the district headquarters town.
Referring to the violence, Banerjee said he was advised by a number of people not to go ahead with the programme, but decided to proceed.
"When I heard about Beldanga violence, many within my party and others advised me against holding the roadshow and meeting today. But we went ahead, as the incident was incited by the BJP and a gaddar (traitor). My not holding a meeting today would have given oxygen to such elements," he said.
Banerjee said the traitor had already been expelled and would be exposed publicly in the coming days.
Naming Kabir, Banerjee said, "Those who divide people should be shown the door. Those who do politics in the name of Babri Masjid will be defeated. Humayun Kabir’s true self will be exposed soon..
Urging people not to fall prey to provocation, he said the administration had been asked to take action against those involved in arson and attacks, including the assault on a woman television reporter.
Banerjee said he had taken up the issue of the unnatural death of a Bengali-speaking migrant worker from Murshidabad in Jharkhand with the chief minister’s office there and asserted that the TMC had always stood by migrants facing harassment outside the state.
He said Baharampur MP Yusuf Pathan and the local MLA would visit the family of the migrant worker whose body was found hanging in his room, an incident that triggered violence and protests in Beldanga.
"The state government has already announced Rs 2 lakh as monetary compensation to the family of the deceased and a government job for his wife," he said.
Launching a sharp attack on former Baharampur Congress MP Adhir Chowdhury, Banerjee described him as a “BJP dummy candidate” and accused him of remaining silent on issues such as alleged harassment of Bengali-speaking migrants and deletion of voters’ names during the SIR exercise.
"In the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, we asked people to defeat the BJP agent, and he suffered a crushing defeat. In the 2026 Assembly elections, TMC will win all 22 seats in Murshidabad district," Banerjee claimed.
He also accused the Election Commission of turning a blind eye to alleged harassment of people during the SIR process.
"The Nirbachan Commission has turned into a Nirjaton Commission," he said, alleging that people were being intimidated in the name of verification.
He said the TMC will win 250 seats in the upcoming polls and the dreams of its detractors will not be realised.
Banerjee claimed that the Centre had withheld funds for schemes such as the Jal Jeevan Mission and Awas Yojana, forcing the state to implement projects using its own resources.
"Twenty lakh people will get houses in the next 15 days as the state has funded the project on its own," he said.
Referring to river erosion in Murshidabad, Banerjee accused the Centre of creating hurdles in rehabilitation efforts.
"We do not need your money or projects named after you," he said in a jibe at the Modi government.