JP Nadda accuses Mamata Banerjee government of being anti-Hindu

KOLKATA: BJP president JP Nadda on Thursday called the Trinamool Congress government “anti-Hindu”, putting on record for the first time in Bengal politics the issue of discrimination on the basis of religion. Nadda buttressed his argument by pointing to the “minority appeasement politics” of Trinamool, portraying Hindus as victims.
Trinamool’s Rajya Sabha leader Derek O’Brien refuted Nadda’s allegations that the state government was hindering development in Bengal. He said the Trinamool government had launched Swasthya Sathi scheme in 2016, two years before the Centre’s Ayushman Bharat. As many as 7.5 crore people in the state benefited under Swasthya Sathi while the Centre issued 12.5 crore e-cards under Ayushman Bharat for the country, of which 4.68 crore were state cards, he said.
Nadda also spoke of the Ram Mandir bhumipujan of August 5 in Ayodhya, but with a difference. “Ram Mandir is linked to the aspirations of crores of Indians. When the entire country was watching the bhumipujan, Mamata didi imposed a lockdown in Bengal and prevented people from taking part in the celebrations,” he said.
“But the same government lifted the announced lockdown on July 31 on the occasion of Bakrid. We have no problem with the government calling off lockdown during Bakrid celebrations. But why was the government so firm when it came to Ram Mandir?” said Nadda, addressing the BJP state executive committee’s first meeting on Thursday.
The BJP president called for breaking away from an “anti-Hindu” mindset. “Anti-Hindu mindset is all pervasive in Bengal and needs to change. Trinamool is politicising this mindset,” said Nadda. He urged BJP activists to take the issue to the people ahead of the 2021 Bengal assembly polls. Taking the cue, BJP national general secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya termed the Trinamool regime a government for “30% of Bengal’s population”.
Nadda said the “hobe na” (won’t happen) mindset of the state government should change as it hampered development. “Mamataji says hobe na. Ki hobe na? Sab kichhu hobe (What won’t happen? Everything will happen eventually),” he said, while setting a tall target of BJP winning 50% vote share, up 10% from the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.
“The state government has put up blockades in the way of the Centre providing health insurance benefits to 4.75 crore people under the Ayushman Bharat scheme. Farmers have been deprived of crop insurance schemes of the Centre. They have changed names of projects like Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana and Grameen Sadak Yojana while the Centre has been funding these,” said Nadda.
Pointing to the rising vote share from 2% in 2011, Nadda said people in Bengal “have blessed the BJP”. “This is how we will move ahead and dislodge TMC in 2021. They should be sent on a very long vacation...lock, stock and barrel,” he said.