Corrupt TMC regime sheltering infiltrators; BJP govt in Bengal vital for national security: Amit Shah

Kolkata: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday mounted an all-out attack on the TMC government, accusing it of shielding infiltrators, institutionalising corruption and deliberately undermining border security for electoral gains.

Shah said the formation of a BJP government in the state was no longer just a political objective, but a “national security necessity”.

Addressing a massive BJP workers’ meeting at Barrackpore in North 24 Parganas, the home minister asserted that the 2026 assembly elections would mark the TMC’s ouster from power.

“The way infiltration is taking place in West Bengal, it has become a security issue for the entire country. Even after court orders, the TMC government is not giving land to the BSF for border fencing because infiltrators are its vote bank,” Shah alleged.

He claimed that the administration and police in the state were not stopping illegal migrants, who were being sent across the country using fake documents.

Shah said the Calcutta High Court had acknowledged that Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee was not cooperating in providing land required for border fencing.

“But, I want to assure you whether Mamata Banerjee provides land by March 31 as directed by the high court or not, in April, a BJP chief minister will complete the border fencing work within 45 days,” he said, asserting that the party had a record of delivering on its promises.

The Calcutta High Court had recently directed the West Bengal government to hand over already acquired land in nine border districts to the BSF by March 31 for putting up barbed wire fencing along the India-Bangladesh border.

The court had noted that West Bengal accounts for more than half of India's total border with Bangladesh, and despite multiple cabinet decisions since 2016, large stretches of the international boundary remain unfenced.

Drawing a comparison with Assam, he said infiltration had stopped there after the BJP came to power, “unlike during the Congress regime”.

On the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, Shah said, “Mamata Banerjee, you can oppose the SIR as much as you want, but it will take place to weed out infiltrators from the voters’ list.” He said any illegal names remaining would be removed once a BJP government was formed.

Shah also accused the TMC of intimidating the Matua and Namasudra communities over citizenship. “There is no need to be afraid. Mamata ji cannot touch your vote,” he said, assuring them of protection and dignity under a BJP government.

Referring to the recent fire incident at a momo factory in Anandapur near Kolkata, Shah alleged it was “not an accident but the result of the corruption of the Mamata Banerjee government”.

He questioned why the factory owners had not yet been arrested and wondered whether their “proximity” to the ruling party was the reason.

“Has the administration completely ceased to exist in Bengal?” Shah asked, adding that the TMC would have reacted differently had the victims belonged to a “particular community”.

Alleging that corruption had been institutionalised in the state, he challenged Banerjee to prove her seriousness about the menace by denying tickets to “tainted ministers” in the assembly polls.

Shah also accused the TMC of opposing a discussion on Vande Mataram in Parliament to appease infiltrators, and called upon voters to “uproot” the Trinamool Congress regime and establish a “government of patriots and nationalists” in Bengal.

Predicting a decisive mandate, Shah said the BJP would cross 50 per cent vote share in 2026, recalling that the party had secured 38 per cent votes and 77 seats in the 2021 assembly elections.

“The year 2026 is the year to say ‘tata, bye-bye’ to the TMC,” he asserted.