Lok Sabha elections 2019: Mamata Banerjee's Trinamool and BJP fought on Twitter over a video
A crude edit of a speech by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee in Hooghly has made it sound as if the Trinamool leader was seeking votes for the BJP. And the Bengal BJP's official Twitter handle has posted what the Trinamool claimed is a distorted version of the chief minister's speech as if it was the original.
"The impact of Modi tsunami. Mamata Banerjee appeals to everyone to vote for BJP. The first time she's made any sense during this election campaign. Thanks a ton Didi," the BJP tweeted, along with a "doctored" clip of Ms Banerjee's speech.
In Ms Banerjee's original speech tweeted by the Trinamool, she ended her address, saying, "On the 6th of May, in this democracy, cast your vote and bury the BJP government."
In the one tweeted by the BJP, the last part of the speech has been edited out so that Ms Banerjee appears to be saying, "On this day, in this democracy, cast your vote for the BJP."
The Trinamool said the video has been further edited with the addition of crowds chanting "Modi, Modi" in an attempt to make it look as if Ms Banerjee was canvassing for the BJP.
The Trinamool criticised the BJP for allegedly doctoring her speech. "Cheats exposed. Desperate BJP tweets doctored Mamata Banerjee's video. Why did you edit out next two words? She says, 'Vote wisely & democratically on 6th May. Bid goodbye to BJP Govt. Shame," the Trinamool tweeted on its official handle, along with the clip posted by the BJP.
The electoral battle in Trinamool-ruled Bengal is at its most intense with Prime Minister Narendra Modi leading the battle formation to breach Ms Banerjee's fortress as the country heads for the fourth phase of the national election. PM Modi on Tuesday took a swipe at the Bengal chief minister over what he claimed was her "prime ministerial ambitions".
"To become the PM of a vast country like India a person has to earn the respect and blessings of its 130 crore people," said PM Modi at a rally in Asansol, where he landed after casting his vote in Ahmedabad on Tuesday morning. "By fighting in just a handful of seats, Didi is dreaming of becoming the prime minister. If the post of the prime minister could be bought in auctions, then Congress and Didi would have bought it with the money they have looted from the country," the Prime Minister said, according to news agency PTI.
Ms Banerjee has accused the centre of sending "officers from Delhi" to weaken her campaign in Bengal. On Saturday last, she said PM Modi was suffering from a "fear of losing elections", and was trying to win in the state by dividing people on communal lines.
"He (PM Modi) knows that he will lose the elections and that is why his face has turned pale... Every day he is thinking about losing in Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Delhi, Punjab, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Odisha and others," she said at a rally in Panighata in support of party candidate for Krishnanagar Lok Sabha constituency, Mahua Moitra.