"How Will You Run Country...": Mamata Banerjee On PM's "Khooni Khel" Jibe

In a sharp attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his "played with blood" remark, West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee has accused him of maligning the state at every step and said that the people of Bengal have never surrendered to the politics of division.

The showdown between PM Modi and Ms Banerjee comes at a time when BJP president JP Nadda is on a two-day visit to the state to work out ways to achieve Home Minister Amit Shah's target of winning 35 of the state's 42 Lok Sabha seats in 2024. 

Addressing the BJP's Kshetriya Panchayati Raj Parishad in West Bengal via video-conferencing today, the Prime Minister said, "In the panchayat elections, the country has seen how the Trinamool Congress played a game of blood (khooni khel khela hai)... In spite of all the excesses, the people of Bengal have continued blessing the BJP and our candidates have won. When they won, they weren't allowed processions and there were life-threatening attacks on them."

The Trinamool Congress chief led the party's response against the PM and said he "insulted, deprived, oppressed, and caused pain" to Bengal only to make BJP leaders in the state happy. 

She accused him of visiting foreign countries, striking deals, giving gifts, returning with certificates, and not bothering to brief parliament on his tours.

"Instead of giving a message of humanity to the people, the Prime Minister chose to malign West Bengal at a small event today. I thank the PM's chair, not the individual, for remembering Bengal. He has insulted Bengal only to gratify BJP leaders here. Poor people's wages due under the 100 days of work (MGNREGA) scheme have been blocked. We were rewarded by the Government of India as the topmost state five times in a row for the scheme," Ms Banerjee said,

"Manipur has been burning for the past 100 days. If the PM cannot control the law and order in a small state like Manipur, how can he run the entire country... How can he run the country if he keeps maligning and threatening Bengal at every step? It must be remembered that the people of Bengal have never surrendered to the politics of division and riots and the people will have the last word," she added. 

Bengal Minister Shashi Panja also attacked the BJP and said the party wasn't being able to digest its losses in the state.  "You have lost in Bengal. You lost in 2021. The BJP lost. And you lost in the panchayat elections as well. You don't want to accept this. You say there was terror in Bengal. Who did it? BJP. Who started it? BJP," he said. 

Mr Nadda, who was at the event addressed by the PM, accused Ms Banerjee and the Trinamool of trying to strangle democracy. 

"If someone has worked towards taking democracy forward it is Modiji. If someone has worked towards killing Democracy, it is Mamata Banerjee. If someone has tried to strangle democracy it is you. We should remember this. But I want to say something. The more you try to trample upon us, the more we will prosper and come forward," the BJP president said. 

Signalling how important the state is for the party, Home Minister Shah is also expected to be in West Bengal this month. At 42, the state has the third-highest number of Lok Sabha seats in the country and Mr Shah has set a target of winning 35 in 2024 - which is more than double the 18 seats that the party had got in 2019. 

The Trinamool Congress, however, says the BJP will have to face defeat, just like it did in the Assembly elections in 2021 and the panchayat polls this year.