PM Modi hits out at Mamata for taking on EC

Criticising West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee for "threatening" the Election Commission, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said that she was busy fighting with the poll panel instead of taking on political parties as she and her party, the Trinamool Congress had already conceded defeat.

"On the brink of defeat, the Trinamool Congress has lost its senses. Mamata and her party have accepted defeat and so she is not fighting the political parties but she is fighting with the Election Commission," Modi told a rally in Krishnanagar, referring to the row over the EC issuing a notice to Banerjee over poll code violation.

The prime minister said that elections would come and go, but the institutions will stay.

"Didi, the Election Commission is an independent body. It has recognition throughout the world. The way players obey umpires in a game, it is the duty of political parties to respect the Commission,"

"After the EC's showcause notice, your duty was to meet them and place your point of view, but you said I will see after 19th May (counting day)," Modi said, adding that she should have seen poverty and hardships of the people instead.

"It would not have been necessary to threaten the Election Commission," he said, adding that the TMC had conceded defeat.

Modi said that if she refused to respect EC, then she has to come clean on whether she has faith in the Constitution and democracy.

Speaking on a report that state chief secretary Basudeb Banerjee had sent a reply to the Commission on its showcause to Banerjee, Modi said, "I heard that chief secretary has given the reply. The Commission did not issue showcause to her as chief minister, it was issued to her as a TMC leader.

"Either TMC, or its lawyer or Mamataji herself should have given the reply. But if it is true that chief secretary has sent the reply, it was a violation of the model code and misuse of government machinery," he pointed out.

He said that there was victory and defeat in democracy but none should disrespect an institution.

On the Narada sting operation against TMC leaders, Modi said, "The whole country had seen it. Bengal's future was being sold before camera. If Left leaders were shown in such video, you (Mamata) would have drummed up protests on the issue throughout the state."

Modi also did not spare the Congress and the Left, which formed an alliance in Bengal, saying both the parties were trying to fool the masses.

"In Kerala there is a Congress government and the communist party is trying hard to uproot this government. The communists in Kerala are attacking Congress and saying they have ruined the country. But in Bengal, the same communists are saying that Congress and communists will do good to the state.

"They are fooling the people. In Kerala, there is 'kushti' (wrestling) but in Bengal there is 'dosti' (friendship). This game cannot go on," he said.

Modi said if Congress and the communists had the guts, they should go for understanding in Kerala also.

"Don't think that people are in your pockets. People will seek answers for your duplicity in Kerala and Bengal," he said.

He said that both the Congress and Trinamool Congress have the same origin and alleged that "they have ruined the state". He claimed that wherever there was a BJP government, there was development.

Modi also criticised the "syndicate business" in Bengal and said both the TMC and CPI-M were involved in it. "The collapse of the Vivekanda flyover is Kolkata is a result of syndicate culture," he said.

Turning to Saradha chit fund scam, Modi said it was lack of proper banking facilities that had made poor people in Bengal vulnerable to chit funds like Saradha.

"When I came to power I saw that more that 40 per cent of the country's population don't avail banking facilities. Why was the poor left at the mercy of the chit funds?," he said.

"I want to ask this question to the Congress the Left and Mamata didi. Had there been proper banking facilities then poor people would not have deposited their money with these chit fund companies," Modi said.

Image: PM Modi addresses a rally at Krishnanagar, West Bengal. Photograph: PTI