BJP’s national secretary and West Bengal observer Kailash Vijayvargiya today slammed chief minister Mamata Banerjee for the police not allowing the BJP to organise a procession yesterday in south Kolkata in support of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) and National Registrar of Citizen (NRC), alleging that law and order has collapsed in Bengal under the “authoritarian” rule of Miss Banerjee and all legitimate voice of democracy are being stifled.
Vijayvargiya and two other party leaders were on Friday stopped by police from taking out a pro-CAA rally at Tollygunge and were taken into preventive custody. Police said the rally, scheduled to start at 2 p.m, was being held without permission, but the saffron party asserted that it has informed the authorities about it. Later in the evening, police released Vijayvargiya and the two other senior BJP leaders, Mukul Roy and Joy Prakash Majumder.
Vijayvargiya said, “BJP supporters were taking out a rally in support of the CAA which has received overwhelming support from all over the country. But yesterday the police of Mamata Banerjee was not allowing us to take out a peaceful, democratic rally.” He said BJP supporters did not resist being taken to the city police headquarters “as BJP supporters believe in democratic protest.”
He also tweeted that Bengal government believes in a reign of terror to destroy the Opposition party’s movement. “CAA was cleared by the Parliament and Trinamul Congress leader Mamata Banerjee took undemocratic path to defy against it to strengthen the vote bank. But we will continue our protest,” he said. Earlier, to counter the “false propaganda” by the TMC chief Mamata Banerjee over the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), National Register of Citizens (NRC) and National Population Register (NPR), the state BJP has decided to train 25,000 booth level party activists to explain the “facts” about the Narendra Modi led government’s measures on citizenship to the public.