Contai /Diamond Harbour (West Bengal):TMC national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee on Saturday mocked BJP's Suvendu Adhikary calling him as 'Reservation Against Cancellation' (RAC) Leader of the Opposition, pointing out that the BJP leader's victory was under a legal challenge in courts of law.
Alleging that Adhikary had won the assembly election against Mamata Banerjee in 2021 by resorting to unfair means, Banerjee claimed fresh elections would see the locals defeating the former TMC leader-turned-BJP strongman befittingly.
"He claims to have defeated the CM. He calls her a Compartmental CM. Before calling Mamata Banerjee he must realise that he himself is an RAC Opposition Leader. He is the only MLA in India, whose `victory' is still under trial," Banerjee said while speaking at a party rally here, in the run up to Panchayat polls which are likely to be held early next year.
The rally was held on the ground of Prabhat Kumar College, which is only a few metres away from Adhikary's residence "Shantikunj". "You took to `load shedding' (power black-out) to (manipulate votes and) win the Nandigram elections... media had telecast that Mamata Banerjee had won the elections. Take it from me there will be a fresh election in Nandigram and the people here will give a befitting reply," he said.
Suvendu Adhikary had won the Nandigram seat by a slender margin over his rival chief minister Mamata Banerjee in a bitterly contested election last year, which TMC claimed had been `fouled' by manipulation. The junior Banerjee on Saturday launched 'Ek Dake Abhishek' in order to listen to the grievances of the people of Purba Medinipur district.
Abhishek Banerjee speaking at the rally held at Prabhatkumar College, near Adhikary's house at 'Shantikunj', announced that people of East Medinipur can call him up with any problems they may have. "I am giving the number of `Ek Dakke Abhishek' (Call Abhishek directly)". You can directly contact me daily from 9 am to 6 pm. Anyone who has anything to say, call me directly. Incidentally, the TMC's Diamond Harbour MP had launched this system in his constituency last June.
Earlier, the BJP had moved the Calcutta High Court to oppose the holding of a rally near Adhikari's house in Contai, but the court had ruled that in a democracy, anyone is allowed to hold a rally, while issuing instructions to ensure that all norms are followed. Meanwhile, Leader of opposition Suvendu Adhikari asked BJP workers to be prepared for a "big battle" with an eye on the panchayat polls, due to be held early next year.
Addressing a rally in South 24 Parganas's Diamond Harbour -- the constituency of TMC MP Abhishek Banerjee, Adhikari alleged that BJP candidates were not allowed to file their nominations in the 2018 panchayat polls in the district. He warned that this time around the game will be a different one. "You decide the names of candidates from the villages and we will ensure that they are able to file their nominations," he told the BJP workers.
"I will hold a huge rally in this district again this month," he said. Brushing aside the TMC's allegations of stepmotherly treatment of West Bengal, Adhikari claimed that Rs 19,000 crore has been given to the state by the Centre this month. "The Centre has given funds under PM Awas Yojana, Samagra Shiksha Mission and PM Gram Sadak Yojana," he said.
BJP MLA Agnimitra Paul claimed that many party workers were stopped on the way to the rally at Diamond Harbour. "Our workers, including women, were beaten up, to stop them coming to the public meeting, while the police were mute spectators," she said. Stating that soccer giants such as Argentina, Brazil and Portugal lost matches in the Qatar World Cup to minions, she said the TMC leadership should not think they will remain in power for eternity. (PTI)
