BJP blames Mamata Banerjee for Murshidabad riots: ‘Met with Imams who were involved…’
BJP leaders claimed CM Mamata Banerjee's visit was “too late” and “politically motivated.”
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) launched an all-out attack after West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee visited the violence-hit Murshidabad on Monday, accusing her of “inciting” riots and “staying silent” over the plight of Hindus.
Mamata Banerjee had visited Murshidabad for a two-day trip to meet those affected by recent riots. The chief minister on Tuesday met the families of those affected in communal clashes. But BJP leaders claimed her visit was “too late” and “politically motivated".
BJP leader Dilip Ghosh said, “It’s your (Mamata Banerjee) MLAs and leaders who incited the violence.”
He credited the Border Security Force (BSF) for preventing further harm. “Hindus were protected because the BSF came into action; otherwise, jihadis wouldn't have spared them,” news agency ANI reported.
Ghosh further alleged that some religious leaders involved in a meeting with Banerjee had played a role in the violence. “The meetings that you had with Imams, a few of whom were in that meeting, some of them were involved in inciting violence,” he said, demanding a CBI inquiry.
“She is going so late now that all the evidence has been removed. After 3 to 4 days since the violence took place, the repairs had started. Chief minister Mamata Banerjee should have gone to Murshidabad earlier... But when Hindus were suffering... she remained silent,” BJP’s Ghosh added.
BJP MP Pratap Chandra Sarangi joined in the criticism, calling Mamata Banerjee “anti-Hindu.” He said, “She has no right to speak about the unity of the nation. She divided society in West Bengal… She is responsible for all the communal violence in West Bengal.”
In a statement to news agency ANI, Union minister Giriraj Singh said that Mamata Banerjee visited Murshidabad only after public anger grew. “When a feeling of anger arose among all Hindus in Bengal, Mamata Banerjee reached Murshidabad after 27 days to shed crocodile tears,” Singh said.
Singh alleged that the violence happened under administrative protection and accused the CM of playing “vote bank and appeasement politics.”
West Bengal CM holds TMC meeting in Murshidabad
Mamata Banerjee held a meeting with party functionaries of the Murshidabad district, where communal clashes broke out last month. During the meeting, Banerjee accused the opposition BJP of shielding the culprits behind the riots in the district. She further alleged that BJP leaders were preventing the affected families from meeting their chief minister.
"How could such disturbances be provoked in Murshidabad, which has always been a stronghold of the Trinamool Congress?" Banerjee asked in the meeting, news agency PTI reported, citing sources.
She has directed the district leadership to constitute a 10-member committee to monitor the overall situation of Murshidabad and oversee the organisational affairs, the report added.
