BJP readies for Bengal Assembly polls, to prepare 'chargesheet' of Mamata's 15-year rule in state

New Delhi: Raising the stakes in West Bengal, the BJP is now preparing a chargesheet of the 15 years of Mamata Banerjee’s rule. The BJP has recently announced that it will issue separate chargesheets for all 294 assembly seats in the state.

The party has also launched a campaign to issue assembly-wise chargesheets. It has already issued chargesheets in eight assembly constituencies across the state. The BJP’s chargesheets highlight what the party termed as the failures of the Mamata Banerjee government, and include local problems. These include issues such as civic infrastructure and law and order.

Accusing the Mamata Banerjee-led government of neglecting basic civic amenities, in their chargesheets for eight assembly seats, the BJP has stressed on region-specific issues such as unemployment and access to basic services. The chargesheets also focus on crimes against women as well as corruption.

In its chargesheets, the BJP also accused the TMC government of corruption and mismanagement which it alleged has led to the failure of schemes like the Nagarik Banglar Bari, the PM Awas Yojana, and the Swachh Bharat Mission in the Howrah-Shivpur belt. The chargesheet also alleges waterlogging, power outages, and the supply of contaminated drinking water.

Apart from that, the chargesheets also allege extortion in Dasnagar and surrounding industrial areas, as well as unemployment due to factory closures caused by syndicate rule and political interference. The BJP also alleges a shortage of doctors, medicines, and diagnostics in hospitals, as well as police inaction and a lack of administrative accountability.

The saffron party has struggled to find a solid foothold in the state. In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the BJP managed an impressive 40.2% vote share and 18 Lok Sabha seats. However, in the 2021 assembly elections, the vote share dipped to 38.14% and the BJP won 77 seats in the 294-member assembly.