Amit Shah Releases ‘Charge Sheet’ Against TMC, Frames Bengal Polls as Key to National Security
Shah accuses TMC of corruption, calls Bengal polls crucial.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday intensified the Bharatiya Janata Party’s campaign for the upcoming West Bengal Assembly elections by releasing a “charge sheet” against the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) and framing the contest as critical not only for the state but for national security. Addressing the media in Kolkata, Shah accused the TMC of allowing the state to become a “principal corridor for infiltration, appeasement politics, and border insecurity” during its 15-year tenure.
Shah argued that infiltration routes through Assam had been largely “shut” after the BJP assumed power there, leaving West Bengal as “the only remaining route” for illegal entries. “West Bengal is the only state from where infiltrators are entering the country and creating disturbances,” he said, linking the issue to what he described as the TMC’s “appeasement and vote-bank politics.”
The Home Minister alleged that the Mamata Banerjee government had deliberately obstructed central efforts to strengthen border management, including by refusing to provide land for border fencing. “The TMC government has not provided land for border fencing as they want to create a vote-bank of infiltrators,” Shah claimed, asserting that the refusal was politically motivated.
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Framing the upcoming polls as a choice between “fear and trust,” Shah accused Banerjee of fostering politics based on lies, violence, and corruption. “The basis of TMC coming to power is lies, fear, and violence. But since 2011, BJP has been fighting against this, and I believe that this time BJP will form the government in Bengal,” he said. Shah emphasized that the charge sheet was filed on behalf of the people of Bengal, urging voters to decide whether they wanted “fear” or “trust” as the foundation of governance.
Shah also criticized the TMC for failing to deliver on its promise of a “Sonar Bangla,” alleging that the state had become a hub for criminal syndicates and stifled industrial growth. He described West Bengal under TMC rule as a “graveyard for industry,” asserting that mismanagement and corruption had held back economic development.
The West Bengal Assembly elections will be conducted in two phases on April 23 and April 29, with vote counting for both phases scheduled for May 4. Shah’s comments underscore the BJP’s strategy of highlighting security and governance issues as central themes in the party’s campaign ahead of the polls.
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