Bengal Only State Where BJP Withheld Funds After 2021 Poll Loss: Trinamool After PM's Speech

In reaction to Prime Minister Narendra Modi asking opposition parties not to come in between Central government funds sent to the state for the common people, the Trinamool Congress (TMC) said that West Bengal is the only state from which they have withheld funds after the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) failed to win in the West Bengal Assembly polls in 2021.

"...the PM has contradicted himself because he is still on a 'revenge' mode when it comes to Bengal," the Trinamool Congress said in a statement hours after the Prime Minister addressed his party workers after the BJP's good performance in assembly elections in the Hindi heartland states.

"Bengal is the ONLY state for whom they have withheld the funds after getting a drubbing in 2021 Polls while lakhs of poor people here are still suffering due to him and his government's stepmotherly attitude towards Bengal, that highlights zamindari culture." the party added.

However, the TMC highlighted that their National General Secretary, Abhishek Banerjee has been helping deprived beneficiaries by providing them with financial assistance.

"On the other hand, our National General Secretary Abhishek Banerjee, as promised has been helping deprived beneficiaries almost every day by providing them financial assistance and thus standing by them in tough times," the TMC stated.

In a post on 'X', the TMC demanded the immediate release of the pending funds of MGNREGA and Awas Yojana.

"We demand the immediate release of the pending funds of MGNREGA and Awas Yojana. We shall not bow down before BJP's zamindari regime and continue to fight until we secure our rights!" the party said.

In his victory speech, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said, "Today, it is a lesson for all these parties not to come in between the central government's schemes for the poor and the funds sent for them. If they do not do so, people will knock them off."

The BJP is on its way to creating a record in Madhya Pradesh and its expected to come to power again after having ruled the state for 18 of the past 20 years.

Rajasthan seems to have followed the over three-decade-old trend of rotating governments and the Congress government led by Ashok Gehlot appears to be on its way out. BJP has bounced back strongly in Chhattisgarh, where the ruling Congress was expected to have done well.

The counting of votes in the four states, which went to the polls last month, started at 8 am on Sunday.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)