Trinamool govt encouraging anti-Hindu mind set in Bengal: Nadda

Kolkata: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president JP Nadda on Thursday slammed the Mamata Banerjee-led West Bengal's Trinamool Congress government for its 'vote bank' politics and 'appeasement theory' especially for a particular community in the state.

He said that the incumbent Trinamool government is encouraging an anti-Hindu mind set in West Bengal.

"Mamata didi imposed a lockdown on August 5, on the occasion of Ram Mandir's foundation stone laying ceremony. She trampled the religious sentiments of millions in the state. It is unfortunate. The lockdown ended on July 31 throughout the country then what was the point in imposing partial lockdown on Aug 5," the BJP president questioned.

Nadda said that people of West Bengal have showered blessings on the lotus brigade.

"The vote percentage has climbed to about 40 per cent from a mere 2 per cent in the past. We need to put in our best effort to live up to people's expectations in the state and uproot the Trinamool government in the coming Assembly polls scheduled in 2021 with an increased voting share," he said, while addressing a virtual meeting of the newly-formed BJP state committee here.

He also took a dig at the state government's role in the Amphan cyclone relief fund and the irregularities in its distribution in the rural areas.

He also condemned the Visva Bharati incident saying that Trinamool Congress-backed land mafias are trying to threaten the varsity authorities in Santiniketan.

"Educated residents of Bengal will never pardon them for such political atrocities. I wonder what is happening here in West Bengal," Nadda said.

A large number of people had ransacked the Visva Bharati campus protesting against the construction of a boundary wall at the Pous Mela ground. The incident took place last month as the Visva Bharati authorities decided to fence off the Pous Mela ground by erecting a boundary wall and began the construction work there on August 17.

Hundreds of irate locals, under the banner of Save Pous Mela Committee, barged into the fair ground and vandalised temporary shelters. They were seen breaking plastic chairs and some structures that were installed there on a temporary basis. They also dismantled one of the varsity gates using a JCB machine.

According to sources, the Visva Bharati authorities had decided to scrap Pous Mela after their 'bitter experience' with the local traders in the last two years while organising the fair. There were tussles between the authorities and the local traders and artisans in the past for making the latter comply with the National Green Tribunal (NGT) guidelines.