JHARGRAM: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday condemned the alleged attacks on Bengali-speaking migrants and accused the BJP of orchestrating a campaign to harass Bengalis in the name of citizenship and voter list revision.
Leading a massive protest rally in tribal-heartland Jhargram, the TMC chief said if needed, she will expose the BJP and the Centre over the alleged attacks on the Bengali language and Bengal's people.
"They (BJP) are saying there is no language called Bengali. I will expose them before the world," Banerjee said.
"If you attack the Bengali language and Bengal's people, I will not stay silent," she said.
Taking a dig at the BJP over the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, the Trinamool Congress chief said, "Not a single elector should be omitted from the voter list in the name of SIR. They are trying to make a BJP list, not a voter list."
Banerjee further alleged that the SIR exercise was part of a larger plan to implement the National Register of Citizens (NRC) through the backdoor.
"The ploy behind SIR is to bring the NRC through the backdoor. People are already dying by suicide out of fear," she alleged.
"How can someone be branded a Bangladeshi just because he or she speaks in Bengali?" the chief minister asked.
"This is nothing but a conspiracy to harass our people."
Slamming the BJP's demand for documents to prove citizenship, Banerjee said, "Do BJP leaders themselves have their birth certificates? What right do they have to question the identity of others?"
The Jhargram rally saw widespread participation from migrant families, students, and local leaders, as Banerjee positioned herself again as the defender of Bengali pride, language, and identity.
