Ahead of
eight-phased West Bengal assembly elections, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on
Wednesday said that a son of Bengal’s soil will be made chief minister if BJP
is voted to power, adding that West Bengal has always brought the nation
together through the chants of Vande Mataram. He was referring to CM Mamata
Banerjee who many times termed people BJP workers as bohiragoto” (outsider),
reported PTI.

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“Bengal
brought together the people of India through Vande Mataram, and on that land,
Mamata-didi is talking about ‘bohiragoto’. No Indian is an outsider here, they
are the children of Bharat Mata,” he said.

“We are being labelled as tourists, we are being mocked and insulted” said Modi adding that people of Tagore’s Bengal do not consider anyone an outsider like Mamata Banerjee.

Modi, while addressing
an election rally in Kanthi in the Purba Medinipur district, added that Bengal
is the land of icons like Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay, Rabindranath Tagore and
Subhas Chandra Bose and no Indian can be an outsider in the birth place of such
legends.

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When the BJP forms
government in Bengal, the chief minister will be a son of the soil, he said at
the rally amid loud cheers from his supporters.

Modi’s comments
came amid an “insider vs outsider” debate with Banerjee asserting
regularly that she won’t allow Bengal to be ruled by “outsiders” from
Delhi or Gujarat, in a reference to the BJP and the prime minister.

The Trinamool
Congress has even launched the ‘Bangla Nijer Meyeke Chaye’ (Bengal wants its
own daughter) campaign, with party leaders calling BJP functionaries visiting
the state as “election tourists”.

The prime minister
said that Banerjee insulted the people of Nandigram with false accusations, and
people would give her a befitting reply.

“You are
maligning Nandigram and its people before the entire country. This is the same
Nandigram that gave you so much. The people of Nandigram will not forgive you
and will give you a befitting reply,” he said, apparently referring to the
March 10 incident in which the chief minister was injured.

Banerjee had
alleged that a conspiracy was hatched to attack her ahead of the elections to
derail her poll campaign.

Modi said that BJP
would make every scheme in the state scam-free and bring in transparency,
hitting out at the TMC over ‘cut money’, ‘tolabaji’ (extortion) and
ground-level corruption.

“We (Centre)
had sent relief for the Amphan affected areas. But the funds were looted
through the ‘Bhaipo (nephew) window’,” he said, attacking TMC MP Abhishek
Banerjee, the nephew of the chief minister.

The prime minister
said that Banerjee was talking about ‘Duare Sarkar’ (government at doorstep),
while she will be shown the door on May 2.

The popular ‘Duare
Sarkar’ programme was launched by Banerjee’s government months ahead of the
election, delivering services through special camps at neighbourhoods.

The chief minister
has also promised that she will ensure doorstep delivery of ration, if voted to
power for the third time.

The prime minister
was campaigning in Kanthi, the backyard of the influential Adhikari family,
members of which have switched over to the BJP from TMC ahead of the elections.

Modi alleged that
the TMC government brought in “darkness” in Bengal with sounds of
“bomb blasts and gunfire” ringing in the air frequently.

“Violence and
bomb blasts are reported from here regularly. Even, whole houses are blown up
by explosions. We have to change this situation,” he said, promising that
his party will work towards making the state “Sonar Bangla”.

“Bengal needs
peace, stability, freedom from bombs, guns and violence. The Trinamool
government has only given darkness to Bengal. BJP’s double-engine government
will usher in Sonar Bangla,” he said.

Modi alleged that
Banerjee was hurling abuses if asked for a report on the work done in the last
ten years.

“In a
democracy, there can be victory and defeat. But when you ask for
“hisaab” (report) on what the TMC government has done in the last ten
years, abuses are being hurled at us,” he claimed.

“In
neighbouring Assam, there is an NDA government for the last five years. There
has been peace and stability in these five years. Those who chose the path of
separatism have returned to the mainstream. Bengal also needs peace and
stability, and BJP will do it,” he said.

In a dig at
Banerjee’s ‘Khela Hobe’ slogan, Modi said no more game will be played and
people will be served when the BJP forms government in the state.

“Apni khela
korun, amra sheba korbo. khela noy, sheba hobe,” Modi said in Bengali,
which means ‘you continue to play, while we will serve the people’.

Assailing the
state government over PM-Kisan, Modi said farmers of the state would not
forgive the TMC for depriving them of the financial aid.

Listing out
various developmental projects for industrial town Haldia and the coastal areas
in the district, Modi said syndicates and corruption have ruined West Bengal’s
coastal ecosystem.

“Haldia’s
economy has been destroyed. It is time to free our coastal people from ‘cut
money’ culture and corruption, and it depends on the power of your votes,”
he said.

The BJP’s
“double-engine” government will make Haldia an important centre for
exports and imports, Modi said.

“The Centre
is taking steps to modernise the Petuaghat Fishing Harbour. The coastline has
immense economic opportunities associated with tourism,” he said.

Elections to the
294 assembly seats in West Bengal will be held in eight phases from March 27 to
April 29. Votes will be counted on May 2.