Targeting the ruling BJP at the Centre on the issue of National Register of Citizens (NRC), West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday said Bengal does not bow before anyone and will provide shelter to all those people who have been wronged and face discrimination.
“Bengal never bows down before anyone. The ruling party at the Centre has resorted to ‘Bengali Hatao’ (chase away the Bengalis). This doesn’t happen in Bengal. Here we love Assamese, Bengalis, Biharis, refugees, backward classes, minorities, Nepalis as well as Hindi and Urdu speaking populace,” Banerjee said at a meeting during her two-day visit to north Bengal.
“If our brothers and sisters anywhere face any kind of discrimination, irrespective of the fact whether they are Bengalis or Biharis or Assamese, Bengal will love them in its own way and provide them shelter,” she said.
Talking about the situation in Assam, she said: “What is happening in Assam? In the name of identifying ‘genuine voters’ names of 40 lakh people have been omitted. Are you people getting it? People who promised so many things have left out the names of 40 lakh people. People are committing suicide.”
She accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of chasing out Bengalis from Assam and Biharis from Gujarat.
Also bringing up the issue of lynching, Banerjee said: “So many Bengali labourers have been lynched. Labourers work in different states…we do not do anything of this sort.”