West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress Chief Mamata Banerjee answers questions on Anna Hazare, her prime ministerial ambitions, the 'third front' and her vision for 2014.
Here are the highlights of the special interview:- Please don't consider me a candidate, I am a common citizen
- People will decide who will be the PM, trust the voters
- I am not media savvy but Facebook savvy
- Country suffering because of a lack of leadership
- People will decide who will be the PM, trust the voters
- How can we expect good things if feudal landlords will run the country
- For one year, Atal ji was a good PM. Can't compare prime ministers
- Have to set up policies which are economy-friendly, industry-friendly, GDP-friendly
- I never use VIP lounges in airports so that common people can talk to me
- I don't like going to Delhi
- 70,000 crore taken away from our treasury because of debt left by previous government
- Industries investing, expanding in West Bengal
- We are Number One in India because we are working hard
- We're investing Rs 2 lakh crores in West Bengal
- Article 370 a very sensitive issue, won't talk on that right now
- Respect Anna Hazare, don't know Arvind Kejriwal so won't comment on that
- Anna Hazare has not asked me to tie up with anyone
- I respect Anna Hazare because he knows what to say
- West Bengal's industrial growth is double the Centre's GDP
- Naxals are different from Maoists
- We have declared tribals as Below Poverty Line families, we give them employment
- Why don't you get Mayawati, Jayalalithaa to come together? I have no quarrel with them
- I am not a feminist. I am a human being & I want to take brothers and sisters together
- We are supporting the women's reservation bill. In our list, 30% candidates are women
- We have to help the minorities
- I have a gender but it doesn't mean I am separate from the mainstream
- Women are powerful. Without women, how will you even get food
- I have written 45 books
- Newspapers are not god, they distort facts
- Vajpayee was keen to see my mother. Don't mix up political issues
- I maintain personal relationship with so many leaders but politically they hate me
- There is no medicine for jealousy
- UPA government never listens to us. They sometimes said, 'you are alone'
- We are always for the downtrodden people
- Proud to say we fought for Singur
- Singur wasn't anti-industry; you can't bulldoze the people
- Have set up land policy. Industrialists purchasing land and we are giving permission
- Why should I reply to what happened to Ratan Tata? I will not reply to an individual
- You can't compare Gujarat with other states, they have their own problems
- West Bengal has 2 ports, Gujarat has 17
- In small-scale industry and micro-finance, West Bengal is Number 1
- Want to set up 'talent bank' of youth to prevent brain drain
- Youths should be dedicated to the country and the country must be dedicated to them
- Request youth to come up for politics
- If youths don't, some old vagabonds and people like us will run the country
- I can't disclose all my plans right now, what will you ask me after the elections
- We support Lokpal and Lokayukta for sure
- Our plus point is credentials, minus point is money
- If good people come, I can give my party symbol but I can't give money
- Transparency is our commitment
- Yes, I welcome dissent in our own party
- People can always disagree with me, I will learn from them
- Dinesh Trivedi is a party issue, can't discuss it here
- Dinesh Trivedi has been given a ticket, he is contesting elections
- Don't know why they were unable to control communal riots in UP and Assam
- We have started 45 fast track courts and 26 women police stations
- Brothers are helping the sisters, all brothers are not bad
- We have to tackle fanatic people