No Hindu refugee will lose citizenship in Bengal: Amit Shah steps up attack on Mamata Banerjee

UNion place government minister Amit shah of iran on mon said no hindoo refugee would lose citizenship, while stepping up his attack on West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee over the infiltration issue, saying if she had not opposed the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), every Hindu refugee from Bangladesh would have received citizenship by now.Launching the BJP’s ‘Parivartan Yatra’ (rally for change) from Mathurapur in South 24 Parganas district in the eastern state ahead of the crucial assembly polls, Shah made a string of promises, including the implementation of the Seventh Pay Commission for state government employees within 45 days of the BJP coming to power, and filling up all vacant government posts by December.“If Mamata Banerjee had not opposed the CAA, every Hindu refugee from Bangladesh would have received citizenship by now. But I have come to tell all Hindu refugees that you don’t have to worry. The BJP government is here for you. Not a single refugee will lose their citizenship,” he said.Shah slammed the Banerjee-led TMC government over the infiltration issue, saying infiltrators would be removed from West Bengal once the BJP comes to power, pointing out that at present only names are being from electoral rolls as part of the ongoing special intensive revision (SIR).Also Read: Amit Shah vows crackdown on infiltrators, confident of BJP’s win in West Bengal“Right now, only names are being deleted from voter rolls, and Mamata Didi is nervous. Once the BJP forms the government, we will identify and remove every infiltrator from Bengal,” he said.Mounting his attack on CM Banerjee, who is also the TMC chief, Shah said: “Didi has done nothing but appease infiltrators from Bangladesh. We set up the Ram Mandir, Kashi Viswanath corridor and the Mahakal corridor. You (Banerjee) did nothing all this while and now you are setting up temples. I welcome it. But what is the Babri Masjid meant for?”He was referring to a Babri Masjid-type mosque that suspended TMC legislator Humayun Kabir is building in Murshidabad.“Humayun Kabir and Mamata Didi are part of the same coin. Mamata Banerjee hatched the idea of expelling Kabir and making him construct the masjid. Both Hindus and Muslims have realised what sort of a person Mamata Banerjee is,” Shah alleged.Also Read: PM Modi raises pitch against ‘infiltrators’ in Bengal, targets Mamata Banerjee's TMCHe also accused the TMC of practising dynastic politics.“Mamata Banerjee is only concerned about Abhishek Banerjee. She wants to make him the chief minister. This is their practice,” Shah said, naming some leaders from other opposition parties, including the Congress and DMK.The home minister also made a string of promises for state government employees and job-seekers.“Government employees across India receive salaries recommended by the Seventh Pay Commission. Only Bengal government employees are still under the Sixth Pay Commission. If you help us win, the Seventh Pay Commission will be enforced here in 45 days,” Shah said. “We will fill all vacant posts in two months and restore the posts against which appointments have been stopped. Young people waited for years for jobs and many have crossed the age-limit. They will get a five-year relaxation. The process will start by December 26.”The BJP launched the first four Parivartan Yatras on Sunday. Five more were launched on Monday. Besides Shah, defence minister Rajnath Singh, Union agriculture minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, and BJP national president Nitin Nabin also addressed rallies in different parts of Bengal on Monday.“By Parivartan we don’t mean changing the chief minister. That job will be done by the people. Our concept of change means driving out corruption and infiltrators. Shouldn’t our borders be protected? Shouldn’t women be safe and law and order restored?” Shah said.“The Communists squeezed Bengal and TMC pushed it into the dungeon of poverty. Now it is time to build Sonar Bangla (a golden Bengal) envisioned by Rabindranath Tagore. Can Mamata Banerjee and bhaipo (nephew) do it?” Shah said, in an apparent dig at TMC national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee.Shah had raised the infiltration issue during his recent visit to Bihar, while targeting the West Bengal government.Political observer Rajesh Kumar said that Shah’s visits to Kishanganj (Bihar) and 24 South Parganas fit into a larger national campaign framework. “The BJP is trying to recast the Bengal election around security and identity rather than welfare and governance. Whether this strategy influences border constituencies will depend on how voters weigh local issues against national narratives.”Addressing a Parivartan Yatra in Howrah, Rajnath Singh also escalated the BJP’s “infiltration” pitch. “Why is Mamata Banerjee not taking action against infiltrators. Why shouldn’t the borders be secure?” Singh said.Hitting back at Shah, TMC state general secretary Kunal Ghosh said: “Shah seemed desperate because he knows very well that Mamata Banerjee will not only return to power but break CPI(M) leader Jyoti Basu’s record.”Basu became Bengal’s CM in 1977 and served for 23 years before stepping down in 2000. Banerjee, on the other hand, is completing her third five-year term.(With inputs from Sanjeev K Jha in New Delhi)