West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Saturday accused the BJP-led Centre of attempting to "snatch away the voting rights" of people through the ongoing revision of electoral rolls ahead of the assembly polls. “People's names were deleted in SIR. I went from Kolkata to Delhi, from Calcutta High Court to the Supreme Court for this. I hope that people's rights are safeguarded. I stand with everyone in Bengal, with all castes, communities and creeds. I will continue this fight...We will not let Modi ji snatch away our rights...You are trying to forcibly control our Govt, you want to impose President's Rule. Still, we won't be scared. Jo darte hain, wo marte hain. Jo ladte hain, wo zindagi mein kamyab hote hain...BJP is a party of thieves and goons, a party of traitors...There are also traitors who take money from BJP to divide votes,” she said.
Addressing thousands of people after Eid prayers at Kolkata's Red Road, the Trinamool Congress (TMC) supremo alleged that the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls - which the ruling party claims has led to large-scale deletions of voter names - was part of a broader attempt to influence the electoral process in the state.
We will fight till the end to protect democracy: Mamata
"We will not allow Modi ji and the BJP to take away your voting rights. We will fight till the end to protect democracy and the rights of every citizen," Banerjee said at the gathering.
Her remarks come amid an intensifying political row over the electoral roll scrutiny exercise, which the TMC has repeatedly described as an attempt to remove names of genuine voters, particularly from minority-dominated areas, ahead of the assembly polls.
Banerjee warned that any move to disenfranchise voters in the name of revision or verification of electoral rolls would be resisted by her party. "Those who are targeting Bengal and trying to divide people should go to hell," she said, drawing loud cheers from the gathering.
Mamata says Bengal would not allow forces trying to polarise society to succeed
The chief minister also invoked Bengal's long tradition of communal harmony, saying the state would not allow forces trying to polarise society to succeed. "Bengal believes in unity. Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs, Christians - everyone lives together here. We will not allow anyone to break this social fabric," she said.
The annual Eid congregation at Red Road - one of the largest in eastern India - has often doubled as a political platform during election years, offering parties an opportunity to reach out to the state's sizeable Muslim electorate, which constitutes around 30 per cent of the population.
