Due to the blessings of the people of Bengal, BJP crossed the 300 mark in 2019," he added ( Picture credit: AN... Read More

KOLKATA: Union home minister Amit Shah on Sunday said that the Bharatiya Janata Party will turn West Bengal into "Sonar Bangla" and develop it on all counts if given an opportunity for five years by the people in the state. He asked people to counter Mamata Banerjee 's slogan ' Didi Ke Bolo ,' by saying 'Aar Noi Anyay', meaning, we will not tolerate this injustice.

"Give BJP five years and we will make the state 'Sonar Bangla'," Shah said while addressing a public meeting at Shahid Minar here.

The Union home minister said that people should join the 'Aar Noi Anyay' (No more injustice) campaign and make West Bengal an atrocity-free state.

" Mamata didi goes to every village and asks 'Didi Ke Bolo,' they wonder what to answer. Today I have come here to tell you that don't sit quietly. Whenever Didi asks 'Didi Ke Bolo,' you say, 'Aar Noi Anyay', meaning, we will not tolerate this injustice," he said.

The senior BJP leader claimed that the BJP would form the next government in the state. "The BJP will form a government with a two-thirds majority in the next Assembly elections in West Bengal in 2021. In the 2019 general elections, BJP got 2 crore 30 lakh votes as compared to 87 lakh votes that it got in 2014. Due to the blessings of the people of Bengal, BJP crossed the 300 mark in 2019," he added.

He further said that it is the BJP's endeavour to develop the state on all counts.

"Our endeavour is to develop Bengal. We are committed to removing exploitation of poor in the state. Our endeavour is to improve the law and order of the state, end the syndicate, stop infiltration. We strive to give citizenship to our refugee brothers and sisters," he said.

Shah further said that the next chief minister of West Bengal will be a son of the soil and not some political heir.

" Modi Ji has taken many issues apart from development related to the safety and security of the country after he held reins of the government in 2019. This is Shyama Prasad Mukherjee 's land who sacrificed his life in Kashmir for the integrity of the nation. We removed the Article 370 and 35A to propound the idea of 'one nation, one chief'. We are also committed to building a Ram Temple in Ayodhya ," the Union Home Minister said.

Giving a clarification on the CAA issue, he said, "When we brought CAA, the opposition including Mamata Banerjee and Communists raised a scare that the citizenship of Muslims will be taken away. This is entirely untrue. Mamata Banerjee had earlier herself advocated for citizenship to persecuted minorities from neighbouring countries. After coming to power, she forgot her commitment."

He pointed out that West Bengal has lagged behind on development indicators under Mamata Banerjee's rule.

"In Mamata didi's rule, West Bengal has lagged behind other states. The state is on number 20 as far as development indicators are concerned. Every fifth person is below the poverty line. 70 per cent of farmers are under debt. Prime Minister Modi wants to grant Rs 6,000 to every farmer under PM Kisan Samman Nidhi but Mamata didi does not let it reach the farmers," he said.

"Today West Bengal has debts of Rs 3,75,000 crore. The consumption of electricity is 30 per cent less than the national average. Industries are closing down," he pointed out.

