Bengal Government Will Collapse In 5 Months, Says BJP. Trinamool's Reply

The collapse of Mamata Banerjee's government in West Bengal is just a matter of time, the BJP said today, stepping up attack on the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) in the state.

Dismissing the claims, the TMC said that BJP leaders in the state are only trying to "raise their ratings in Delhi" by threatening a government that "enjoys mass support".

BJP MP Shantanu Thakur, at a party event in his Lok Sabha constituency Bongaon, said the TMC government won't last beyond five months from now.

"Mamata Banerjee's government has outlived its utility. Had the TMC not resorted to widespread rigging in the recently concluded panchayat polls, the BJP would have bagged thousands of additional seats. But this is going to be the last election under the supervision of the TMC government where all the state machineries, including the State Election Commission (SEC), have failed to play a neutral and impartial role," Mr Thakur, the Union Minister of State for Shipping, said.

"I have a hunch this government will not last beyond five months," he added.

Talking to reporters, the BJP's Bengal chief, Sukanta Majumdar, said, "Anything can happen any time. Let's see what happens."

"Who knows, there might be a people's uprising against the TMC's misrule and terror. Who knows, the TMC MLAs may suddenly refuse to follow Mamata Banerjee's way of functioning. I am not saying it will happen. But anything is possible in politics," Mr Majumdar said. 

The Bengal BJP chief also spoke about his meeting with Union Home Minister Amit Shah in Delhi on Friday and said, "The Centre will do everything possible to protect the lives of innocent people in Bengal." 

The Leader of Opposition in the Bengal assembly, Suvendu Adhikari, had earlier demanded the imposition of Article 355 in the state, saying that central intervention has become imperative in the state which witnessed violence during the panchayat polls.

"Though a democratically elected government cannot be toppled, if it fails to perform its duty as envisaged in the Constitution, the Centre has to intervene to save it from slipping into lawlessness," Mr Adhikari said.

Reacting to the remarks made by the BJP leaders, TMC Rajya Sabha MP and party spokesperson Santanu Sen said, "All these BJP leaders, including Suvendu Adhikari, are desperate to raise their ratings in Delhi by issuing threats to a government which came to power for the third time with a huge mandate two years ago and enjoys mass support." 

"If out of desperation the BJP tries any misadventure" after the drubbing in the panchayat polls, the people of state will thwart it, he added.

BJP leaders made similar predictions in December and January and "even spelt out specific dates," but nothing happened, Mr Sen said.

The TMC's state general secretary and spokesperson, Kunal Ghosh, said the BJP is making such claims "to boost the morale of their rank and file," who had been demoralised after the panchayat poll results.

"They (BJP leaders) are themselves aware about the absurdity of their claims," he added.