Kolkata: West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday (April 4) cautioned against seeking citizenship through the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). Speaking at an election rally in Cooch Behar, she warned against the risk of losing government benefits by applying for citizenship.
“By enrolling in the CAA, you are identifying yourself as a Bangladeshi infiltrator. Then you will not get all the government benefits including Kanyashree Rupashree, Lakshmir Bhandar from the state. Judge yourself whether it is good or not,” said Banerjee, criticising the CAA, calling it the “head” to be followed by “NRC”.
Labeling CAA a “trap to turn legal citizens into foreigners” Banerjee said, “We would allow neither CAA nor NRC in West Bengal. If you apply, you will be designated as foreigners.”
With the state gearing up for the election, the Trinamool Congress (TMC) has escalated its opposition to the CAA which has been a focal point of the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP’s) agenda since 2019. While the Rajbanshis of North Bengal demand NRC and oppose the current form of the CAA, citizenship remains a significant issue among the Matuas, the second-largest Scheduled Caste community primarily concentrated in South Bengal.
Following initial celebrations, disappointment prevails among the Matua community in West Bengal. Sensing this discontent, the state BJP is assuring citizenship through certification by priests.
Banerjee also criticised members of the INDIA bloc — the Communist Party of India (Marxist) and the Congress — for “joining hands with the BJP” in West Bengal. While TMC is a part of the INDIA bloc at the national level, it has decided to fight the elections alone at the state level.
She criticised the BJP for nominating former Cooch Behar S.P. Debashis Dhar as its candidate from Birbhum, linking it to the 2021 Assembly polls incident at Sitalkuchi. She said, “The truth of the BJP is reflected in the fact that the person responsible for the killing of five people at Sitalkuchi during the 2021 Assembly polls has been nominated as its candidate.”
Dhar was the S.P. in Cooch Behar during the last Assembly polls. He was later suspended and sent to compulsory waiting after the TMC returned to power for the third consecutive term.
In a display of political strength between the BJP and TMC, both Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Banerjee campaigned in Cooch Benhar on Thursday (April 4), ahead of the polls scheduled for April 19th.
Translated from Bengali by Aparna Bhattacharya.
