Accusing the Communist Party of India (Marxist) of hatching “conspiracies” against her party ever since the Left parties’ debacle in the Lok Sabha elections, Railway Minister and Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee said here on Friday that “such actions will mark its downfall.”
The “conspiracies” were an expression of the CPI(M)’s “political frustration,” she added.
Addressing a rally organised by the Trinamool Youth Congress, Ms. Banerjee alleged that instead of focussing on issues such as the rise in prices of essential commodities and uncontrolled growth of hooch dens in the State, the CPI(M) was conspiring against the Opposition parties.
Urging her party supporters to maintain discipline and exercise restraint to bring about development in West Bengal, she said: “The CPI(M) will incite you at every step. But you should not fall into that trap and cause any damage to people. Ours is a peaceful, democratic, and political movement against the CPI(M)’s atrocities.”
Ms. Banerjee came down heavily on the government for its alleged negative comments against the Railway Ministry on several occasions.
“An entire State government is hell bent on criticising the functioning of a single Union Ministry. I want to ask them where they will hide their faces when the people of this State will show them the door,” she said.
Ms. Banerjee also asserted that the Railways would not forcibly acquire agricultural land for projects, as was being claimed by the CPI(M) through a “disinformation campaign.”
“I am against forcible land acquisition. This is the reason why the Railways has decided to create a land bank for effective utilisation of its surplus land,” she said.
Pointing out that both Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee and the Transport Minister Ranjit Kundu were invited to the inaugural function of the southern extension of the Metro Railway in the city, Ms. Banerjee blamed the government of “misinforming and misguiding people by saying that none from the State government was invited.”
Ms. Banerjee said the CPI(M) leaders were “hurt” as famous personalities like Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, Mahatma Gandhi, Swami Vivekananda, and Rabindranath Tagore, whom they had insulted in the past, were honoured by the railway authorities who had decided to name certain Metro stations after them.
“Personalities like them are the pride of the nation and I will pay tribute to them a thousand times even if the Marxists criticise it,” she stated.
