Arrogant forces running amok in Bengal, warns Sonia

Canning/Serampore: Addressing back-to-back election rallies nearly 100kms apart, Congress chairperson Sonia Gandhi on Tuesday stirred up the Saradha issue and came down hard on Mamata Banerjee and Narendra Modi. Accusing them of inaction, Sonia warned against ‘ahankari shaktiyan’ (arrogant forces) lurking in Bengal.

“We supported Trinamool Congress in 2011after they promised to work for the development of Bengal. However, after coming to power, Mamata dumped all her promises. Now, she is beating her drum on development. What kind of development has taken place in this state? Industries have wound up and unemployment is rampant. Youths are migrating to other states in search of jobs. There is corruption. A flyover came crashing down. People have loan burdens worth thousands of crores on their heads. There is a saying that one fish can foul the entire pond. In West Bengal, the atmosphere has been fouled in such a manner that even the hilsa has fled from its rivers. Now, the state has to import hilsa,” Sonia said.

At Canning in South 24-Parganas, where the majority of the population depends of fishing and agriculture, the Congress chief spoke on how fishermen have suffered under Mamata and Modi.

“While Mamata has left the fishermen to their own plight, the BJP at the Centre is snatching their livelihood by allowing foreign trawlers to fish in Indian waters. When the Modi government has been unable to save the country’s fish, how can it be expected to protect the borders? The Pathankot incident is an example. Bengal also led the country in rice production. Now, rice mills are closing down and the state has to import rice. Both Mamata and Modi assured jobs but nearly 3 crore people still apply for jobs under MGNREGA every day. This shows that there are no jobs. All that the Modi government has done is cut allocations for our policies for women and backward classes,” Sonia added.

According to her, the Modi government is a threat to democracy, secularism and the multi-cultural ethos of the country. She claimed that it was the Congress that set up institutions that made the country great over 60 years of its rule. These institutions are now at threat from organisations like the RSS, she alleged. “Before the Trinamool came to power, they begged for votes. Now, they are threatening people to vote for them. Both Mamata and Modi are two faces of the same coin. They will destroy the state. Do not fall into their trap. We are fighting the elections with the Left this time for the development of West Bengal,” Sonia said.