Lambasting the West Bengal Chief Minister over the Kolkata rape-murder case, Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Sunday said that Mamata Banerjee will have to face the consequences.
In an interview to IANS, the former Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh, spoke on various topics including the rape and murder case of the trainee doctor at RG Kar Medical and Hospital in Kolkata and Jharkhand politics given the coming Assembly polls in the state.
IANS: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has been frequently writing letters to the Prime Minister, over the rape and murder case of a trainee doctor in Kolkata. What is your take?
Shivraj Singh Chouhan: Mamata Didi has become stone-hearted. I cannot understand how, as a woman, she can speak in such a manner when so many daughters are suffering. They are trying to suppress the issue.
First, the parents were falsely informed that their daughter was sick, and then they were told she committed suicide. No FIR was filed for hours, and later, evidence was destroyed while the police stood by. This is the height of injustice, and this cruelty will not last long. The entire country is hurt, and women are feeling insulted in West Bengal. Mamata Didi will have to face the consequences.
IANS: You are in charge of Jharkhand for the Assembly polls and recently, Champai Soren has joined the BJP. So, if the BJP comes to power, will he be made the Chief Minister?
Shivraj Singh Chouhan: Champai Soren has not set any conditions for leadership. He has joined the Bharatiya Janata Party to save Jharkhand. He has ignited a revolution against the way outsiders are taking over land and resources in Jharkhand. He is working towards a larger goal, but now he is a respected leader of the BJP.
IANS: Champai Soren is famous in his Santhal region mainly. So, is there any strategy of the BJP to garner votes from people of non-Adivasi communities and other Adivasi communities?
Shivraj Singh Chouhan: Strategies are never revealed. Champai ji is not alone, the BJP has strong leadership across all sections. We are all working hard, and you can be sure that the BJP will win with a thumping majority.
IANS: Madhya Pradesh has the highest number of Lakhpati Didis since the scheme was your concept. Other states have also copied the scheme, how do you see this?
Shivraj Singh Chouhan: Not just in Madhya Pradesh, but across the country, our Prime Minister has pledged that women will not remain poor. The goal is to help them earn an annual income of one lakh rupees. So far, one crore women have become Lakhpatis, and we aim to make three crore women Lakhpatis, which we are working towards.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
