TMC minister Bratya Basu warns of detention camps if BJP wins Bengal

West Bengal Education Minister Bratya Basu alleged that the BJP, if voted to power in the state, would set up detention camps to deport Bengali-speaking citizens whose names were deleted from the electoral roll during the Special Intensive Revision exercise.

Kolkata: West Bengal Education minister Bratya Basu on Wednesday alleged that if the BJP comes to power in the state, there could be detention camps for deporting “bonafide” Bengali-speaking citizens whose names did not figure in the electoral roll following the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise.

Speaking at the Trinamool Congress’ ‘Meet the Press’ programme at Press Club Kolkata, Basu said it is baffling that almost the entire Union Cabinet and chief ministers of at least six BJP states are moving around Bengal for campaigning “to defeat the only opposition woman chief minister who is waging a fierce fight and will defeat the BJP emphatically again.”

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Alleging that the BJP made the Election Commission delete around 27 lakh names from the electoral roll, labelling it as “under abjudication”, Basu claimed that those whose names are missing, the BJP “wants to link that with NRC and plans to send them to detention camps”.

They will repeat the Assam exercise where lakhs of people, including Hindus, were sent to detention camps in the name of NRC, he alleged.

“In the totally unlikely case of the BJP coming to power in Bengal, there will be detention camps in the state, rest assured. BJP is trying to commit Constitutional genocide, but with Mamata Banerjee around, they are facing resistance to fulfil their agenda,” he said.

“Bengal is not Assam, we won’t allow them to repeat the experiment for deporting our own people, the citizens of this land,” he said.

Basu claimed the scope for inclusion of deleted names by the tribunal was possible, only due to the initiative of our chief minister.

“We must try to include these names, and after May 4, our CM Mamata Banerjee will do everything to include the names,” he said.

Basu claimed that the Aparajita Bill, moved for the safety of women and deterrent punishment of rapists, was yet to get the Presidential nod due to the BJP’s indifference and said once elected, TMC will again go all out to get the bill passed.

Those in the BJP who worked behind withholding the bill “had treated Bilkis Bano rapists and garlanded them”, he said.

On the question of Shah staying in the state to oversee the BJP’s assembly poll campaigning for days and himself participating in a number of rallies and meetings, Basu said, “What can we do if the Union Home minister wants to remote control everything. This further proves the expansionist attitude of the BJP.”

Basu said this also showed Shah’s lack of confidence in the leadership of Bengal BJP that they will be able to pull through in this election.

Alleging that the BJP is practising “political fundamentalism”, he said they always believe in a fascist ideology in dividing people.

“Since 2014, they did not induct any leader from the minority community in the union cabinet, such is their belief in inclusiveness,” he said, asserting people of West Bengal will never allow such a divisive force to come to power.