KOLKATA: BJP national president J P Nadda on Thursday said West Bengal is suffering from "total lawlessness" as the administration has crumbled and cut money culture has become the order of the day.
Nadda who was addressing a press conference here, said the attack on his convoy at Diamond Harbour during the day spoke a lot about the "mentality and frustration" of the Mamata Banerjee government in the state.
Stones were thrown at Nadda's convoy by alleged Trinamool Congress workers when he was travelling to Diamond Harbour in South 24 Parganas district from Kolkata on Thursday to address a rally there.
"What will be the plight of the common man when elected members are not safe? There is total lawlessness. Bengal is suffering from lawlessness, the administration has crumbled," Nadda said.
Claiming that "cut money has become the order of the day in Bengal under TMC dispensation", Nadda said the "anarchic" TMC government will be removed "lock stock and barrel" in the state election due in April-May 2021.
"Political patronage by the Mamata Banerjee government is being provided for those involved in tolabaji (extortion), sand and coal syndicates. Even while performing last rites, people have to pay bribes. The people of Bengal are not going to spare the TMC this time. They are going to send Mamata Banerjee on leave after the 2021 assembly polls," he said.
Reacting to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's statement questioning how his car could be attacked when BJP leaders are protected by central security forces like the CISF, CRPF or BSF, Nadda said, "She has zero idea about how administration works".
"The job of CISF, CRPF is not to stop those pelting stones but to protect the subject. It is the job of the state police to stop the stone throwers," he said.
Asked whether he is in favour of imposition of President's Rule in the state, Nadda said the BJP wants to defeat the TMC democratically and will do so in the state election next year.
Speaking about the ongoing farmers' protest, Nadda said dialogue is the way forward to resolve the issue.
"Our leaders have repeatedly spoken to the leaders of the farmers. All of us want to move forward through dialogue. But I can assure one thing that all the issues raised by the farmers have been answered and they don't need to worry about it. The process of dialogue is the way forward," he said.
The BJP president said the Citizenship Amendment Act has been passed in Parliament.
"Now the rules are getting framed. Once the rules are framed, they will be implemented. The Act will be implemented in West Bengal too".
Nadda had arrived here on Wednesday on a two-day visit to take stock of the activitIes of the party's state unit and participate in an ongoing mass outreach campaign taken up ahead of the 2021 assembly poll.
Trinamool Congress MP Abhishek Banerjee, however, on Thursday termed the attack on Nadda's convoy in West Bengal as an outburst of people's anger, while claiming that the saffron party has not stood by the people of the state during hardships faced by them.
Nadda's convoy was pelted with stones by alleged TMC workers at Sirakol in Banerjee's constituency in South 24 Parganas district when the BJP leader was travelling to Diamond Harbour town to address a rally there.
"Nadda was in trouble today in Diamond harbour. What can I do about it? Outburst of people's anger is not my responsibility. Despite the hardships faced by people owing to lockdown, GST or the note ban, the BJP did not stand by the people," the TMC youth wing chief told a rally at Arambag in Hooghly district.
Asserting that the Mamata Banerjee-led TMC will return to power in the state with a huge majority, he said that as in earlier elections, slander campaigns against the party will not succeed in the Assembly poll in the state due in April-May 2021.
He claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's lifestyle has changed in the last 10 years but it was not the case with the state's Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.
"Narendra Modi used to ride a Rs 10 lakh car 10 years ago and now the vehicle he uses is worth Rs 5 crore. Mamata Banerjee used to travel and still travels in a Rs 3 lakh car. She still lives in a tiled-roof house," he said.
Claiming that the BJP had tried to discredit the TMC over Narada sting tapes and the Saradha chit fund scam before the Assembly elections in 2016, he said that the result was that the party came back with a higher number of seats than in 2011.
On Nadda's assertion that the BJP will win 200-plus seats in the coming Assembly elections, Banerjee said the party will not be able to do it.
The TMC MP said that the battle of election will be fought over development issues and not through clashes and violence.
"I urge the BJP to say what your Modi has done in seven years and what didi (Mamata Banerjee) has done in 10 years," he said, waving a report card that the TMC released on Thursday on the achievements of her government.
"I challenge the BJP to come out with a report card on Modi's achievements and if we can't defeat them with a margin of 10-0 goals, I will not be in politics anymore," he said.
The chief minister's nephew claimed that the BJP leaders do not dare to take his name while making allegations against him.
"They regularly say about bhaipo (nephew), but cannot take my name. I had taken their names at my meeting at Diamond Harbour 11 days back on November 29. But they could not take my name anywhere since then," he said.
Banerjee alleged that the BJP always indulges in politics of religion and "false patriotism".
Every inch of the country's land should be defended from foreign aggression, he said.
"Surgical strike was carried out at Balakot in Pakistan. But today, China has grabbed the country's land at Galwan Valley in Ladakh" but the Modi government is not doing anything about it, he claimed.
After having lunch at poor people's houses for publicity, BJP leaders enjoy a sumptuous dinner at five-star hotels, he alleged.
While the BJP forced the public to stand in queues over demonetisation, Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and National Register of Citizens (NRC), people of West Bengal are lining up with love to register for the TMC government's "Duare Sarkar" (government at the doorsteps) programme, he said.
The TMC leader said that 50 lakh people have already registered for the programme.
Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar also accused the administration of failing to act despite his warning about possible law and order problem during the saffron party leader's meeting.
In a series of tweets, the governor said that that he had alerted the chief secretary (CS) and the director general of police (DGP) of the possibility of the collapse of law and order during Nadda's scheduled rally but their "non responsive stance signals failure of constitutional machinery" in the state.
Several BJP leaders including its Bengal minder Kailash Vijayvargiya suffered injuries, sources in the saffron party claimed.
The West Bengal Police, however, asserted that the situation was peaceful.
"CS @MamataOfficial & DGP @WBPolice called on me today at 6 PM. Unfortunately neither came with any update on pending issues or regarding attack on convoy of BJP President JP Nadda. Their continued non responsive stance signals failure of constitutional machinery in the State," Dhankhar said in a tweet.
He earlier said that he had intimated the state administration at 8.19 am and 9.05 am on Thursday that there could be law and order problem at Nadda's meeting and the chief secretary had informed him that the DGP was alerted and sensitised accordingly.
After the attack, the governor tweeted, "Concerned at alarming reports of anarchy and lawlessness @MamataOfficial indicating ruling party harmads on rampage at BJP President Convoy and political police @WBPolice in support."
Interestingly, the TMC used to describe goons allegedly sheltered by the CPI(M) as harmads during the Left Front rule.
Accusing the police of not acting to stop the attack on Naddas convoy, Dhankhar said, "Time for SP Diamond Harbour to act (as) a public servant."
Sharing a brief video clipping in which Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee purportedly made certain comment on Nadda, Dhankhar urged her "to engage in deep reflection and apologetically withdraw this video comment that outrages essence and sublimity of Bengal's rich culture".
BJP activists blocked roads in the city and various districts of West Bengal on Thursday in protest against the attack on the convoy of the party's national president J P Nadda in South 24 Parganas district.
Protests were held at Dorina crossing in downtown Esplanade area, on S C Mallick Road near Jadavpur police station, on VIP Road in Kestopur and Chingrighata in various corners of the city as the saffron party members and supporters shouted slogans against "worsening law and order situation in the state".
Similar protests were held at Howrah, Asok Nagar in North 24 Parganas, Moina in Purba Medinipur and Dankuni in Hooghly district, party sources said.
A party delegation comprising MPs Locket Chatterjee and Saumitra Khan met West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar at Raj Bhavan to voice their grievances over increasing attack on party members and leaders by the ruling party goons.
Chatterjee later told reporters, "The attack on Naddaji showed the entire country what is the law and order situation in West Bengal. It is condemnable. Is Diamond Harbour (where Nadda's convoy was attacked) not a part of the country? Is it the property of Diamond Harbour MP (Abhishek Banerjee) from Trinamool Congress?" She said Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar is also worried about the situation in the state.
"We urged him to take up with the state administration the issue of continuing attacks on our party men and even leaders of Nadda's stature and seek to know why such incidents are recurring." Stones were thrown at Nadda's convoy on Thursday morning when he was on his way to Diamond Harbour from here.
Several BJP leaders including its Bengal minder Kailash Vijayvargiya suffered injuries, sources in the saffron party claimed.
The West Bengal Police, however, claimed that the situation was peaceful.
"Shri J P Nadda, National President, BJP reached safely at the venue, Diamond Harbour, South 24 Pgs. Nothing happened to his convoy. Few bystanders at Debipur, Falta PS, Diamond Harbour PD, sporadically and suddenly threw stones towards vehicles trailing long behind his convoy," it tweeted.