West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on March 31 reiterated her opposition to the Citizenship (Amendment) Act and described it as a “trap”, which will be followed by the National Register of Citizens (NRC).
“The CAA is a trap to turn legal citizens into foreigners. We would allow neither the CAA nor the NRC in West Bengal,” Ms. Banerjee said while addressing a gathering at Krishnanagar in Nadia district.
She also mocked the BJP’s target of 400-plus seats in the Lok Sabha election and said the saffron camp should first try to reach the 200 mark.
The CAA Rules were made public by the Ministry of Home Affairs on March 11, and those seeking to apply for citizenship under the new Act can do so by through a portal launched by the Ministry.
The West Bengal Chief Minister had opposed the CAA and the Rules claiming that it would turn citizens into refugees. While there is an enthusiasm among the representatives of the Matua community (Dalits who migrated from Bangladesh) about the CAA and its Rules, not many people in West Bengal are keen on applying for fresh citizenship on the Home Ministry portal.
Renewed attack
Resuming her campaign on March 31 after a gap of several days due to a head injury, Ms. Banerjee renewed her attack on the CAA. She urged people not to apply for citizenship under the CAA, saying that once they do that, they would be considered a foreigner.
“The brothers and sisters of Matua community are falling prey to the deception of the BJP believing that their rights have been restored to them. However, this is a lie. What is CAA? CAA is the head and the tail of NRC,” Ms. Banerjee said. She said that those applying for citizenship will fall in the trap of the NRC.
Defends Mahua Moitra
Sharing the dais with Trinamool Congress candidate for the Krishnanagar Lok Sabha constituency, Mahua Moitra, the party chairperson said Ms. Moitra was “maligned and expelled from the Lok Sabha as she was vocal against the BJP”.
The Trinamool MP is pitted against BJP candidate Amitra Roy, who hails from Krishnanagar’s royal family. The Trinamool has built a campaign around Ms. Moitra that people of Krishnanagar do not want any “rani (queen)” but they want “their own daughter” to represent them in the Lok Sabha.
On the BJP’s slogan of “400 paar (winning more than 400 seats)” the Trinamool chairperson said: “I challenge them to cross the 200-seat benchmark first. In the 2021 Assembly election, it gave a call for 200-plus seats but had to stop at 77,” she said.
‘ Cong., CPI(M) helping BJP’
Claiming that she had brought parties in the INDIA bloc together, Ms. Banerjee also accused the CPI(M) and the Congress of “joining hands with the BJP”. On a day when INDIA partners held a meeting in Delhi, Ms. Banerjee indicated that she will decide on the alliance after the election.
“I had brought together and given the name for INDIA alliance. I will see after the elections. In Bengal, the CPI(M), Congress, and the BJP are fighting against us. If anyone votes for the CPI(M) or the Congress, they would actually end up voting for the BJP,” she said.
Referring to the Indian Secular Front, Ms. Banerjee also added that there is “another party” that is aiming for Muslim votes – a vote to them is also a vote to the BJP. “We are the only ones fighting all alone,” Ms. Banerjee said.
