West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. (Express File photo)WEST BENGAL Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Saturday said her party, the TMC, will oppose the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill and demanded that the Centre withdraw the legislation.
Reacting to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking TMC’s support for passage of the Bill, at a rally in Thakurnagar, in North 24 Parganas, Banerjee told a Bangla news channel, “The Centre will have to withdraw the Citizenship Bill. There is no question of supporting it. We will oppose it. We will not let him (Modi) succeed.”
Importance of PM venue
On Modi and Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh’s assertions that the BJP will fare well in Bengal in the coming Lok Sabha polls, in separate rallies in the state, Banerjee said they should worry about winning their own seats before dreaming of a victory in West Bengal.
She said: “His time is up, as his expiry date is over. In the last five years, he has used agencies against Opposition parties, killed farmers, created riots in the name of cow protection, provided no jobs to youths, killed police officers, destroyed the economy with note ban and tried to silence the people. He lacks the courtesy to respect the Prime Minister’s chair…”
Banerjee also alleged that BJP leaders are “outsiders” and had no idea about the culture and heritage of West Bengal. She said the state government has no compulsion to give permission for BJP president Amit Shah’s helicopter to land.
She said, “The PM’s chopper landed today; there was no problem. How can we give permission to land helicopters of the BJP president…who is not a minister but a political leader? They can build their own helipads. The state government has no compulsion.”
