West Bengal panchayat polls: Mamata Banerjee accuses BJP of resorting to 'politics of killing'

Kolkata: Mounting a scathing attack on the BJP, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee Tuesday accused the saffron party of resorting to “politics of killing” in the state and using central agencies against Opposition parties. [caption id=“attachment_4880341” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee. PTI[/caption] Referring to the recent panchayat polls in the state, the chief minister alleged that BJP members were working in connivance with goons who had earlier served the CPM. “The BJP won just a few seats in erstwhile Maoist hotbed of Jangalmahal by resorting to politics of killing. The former CPM goons are now working for them,” Banerjee said at a rally in Kolkata on the occasion of Trinamool Chhatra Parishad (students’ wing) foundation day. Talking about National Register of Citizens (NRC) revision, Banerjee said her government will not allow the exercise under any circumstances. “We will not allow NRC exercise in Bengal. They (BJP leaders) are challenging us. If we are challenged, we will give them a fitting reply,” she said. The chief minister also said that she would not “tolerate” if a citizen is wrongfully tagged a foreigner in Kolkata. “We are Bengal tigers, we will not tolerate if an Indian citizen is dubbed a foreigner,” she asserted. The TMC supremo said she will fight tooth and nail to defeat the saffron party in 2019. “Besides money and muscle power, the BJP is using central agencies against the opposition party leaders. Our motto will be to remove the party from power in 2019 Lok Sabha election,” Banerjee added.