The Sandeshkhali issue and poll violence are the two most important factors in the West Bengal Lok Sabha polls. In this regard, Dr Jitendra Singh, senior leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party and Union Minister of State, Science & Technology; MoS Prime Minister Office, exclusively talked to Organiser Assistant Editor Ravi Mishra in Kolkata on Lok Sabha Elections in Bengal. He said, “Both Mamata Banerjee-led TMC and the Communist Party have used women as a vote bank”: Excerpts
You have been in Bengal for the last few days. How do you see change on the ground?
You will realise when the result is out on June 4. This vicious cycle of this anarchic rule, which is supported by terror and pressure tactics, is now coming of age. People have now realised that they want to be part of the development journey, or Viksit Bharat journey, led by Prime Minister Modi. They don’t wish to be left out. And it is very unfortunate and ironic also that Bengal was always a trendsetter for the rest of Bharat, even before Independence. And there was a very famous adage that what Bengal thinks today, Bharat thinks tomorrow. In other words, Bengal was always one step ahead of other States. Today, it just sees the other way around. In the last two or three decades, there has neither been a single new industry set up there, nor a single big multinational establishment. Meanwhile, in the rest of India, even B towns have emerged on the world map. For example, towns like Ahmadabad, Baroda, have come up. Kolkata is being left behind, and Howrah is the main Kolkata. It is the original seat of Bengal and has always been considered to be the hub of industry. And this has affected three generations of youth. The youth has realised how many opportunities have been unleashed by Prime Minister Modi in the last ten years. Whether it is the startup. We were just about 350 to 400 startups in India when Prime Minister Modi took over in 2014. Today, we have gone to one and a half lakh startups. In the world ecosystem we are rated number three in startups. In economy, we were at number eleven or ten. Now we are at number five. We are going to be four. Even in bio-economy, we were just about $10 billion in 2014, we are today $130 billion. The bio-economy is an emerging part of the economy which is going to contribute heavily in the next 25 years. So all this value in addition to India’s growth, which has also generated employment opportunities for the youngsters, is happening in the whole of Bharat, except in Bengal.
What are the three major issues that are being talked about in the Lok Sabha Elections in Bengal this time?
The first is, of course, development. Second, they are talking about employment. But how will the employment come? No Government can give employment or a Government job to each and every youth. Even the TMC Government cannot give. If it says so, it tells a lie. But a responsible Government is expected to create opportunities and avenues for jobs and employment, which is being done by the Central Government headed by Prime Minister Modi and which is bringing benefits to all the States. But why not here? So, in order to have employment generation, we are talking about it , but we are not creating it because the TMC Government is not allowing it. The third issue is the welfare schemes initiated by Prime Minister Modi. Whether it is Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana, you can go to Gujarat and see how all the colonies of kacha houses have been converted into pakka houses. And I am sure a day will come when you will not find a single kacha house in this country. Why is this not happening in Bengal? Similarly, wherever the household did not have a gas cylinder facility, they were provided without any discrimination. Nobody asked whether the house belonged to a Muslim. But the same again is not implemented here. Because all these central schemes are required to be implemented through the local administration, you need to have adequate cooperation, patronage and support from the district administration. But here, unfortunately, the State Government drops that hint to the district administration that they are not expected to cooperate.
“Both Mamata Banerjee-led TMC and the Communist Party used women
as a vote bank. For the first time, Prime Minister Modi has changed that culture. The administration is asked to prepare a list of houses which do
not have gas cylinders”
In Bengal elections, women are one of the most significant factor. After Sandeshkhali incident, do you think that women will realise this and vote against TMC this time?
I think, most importantly, both Mamata Banerjee-led TMC and the Communist Party used women as a vote bank. For the first time, Prime Minister Modi has changed that culture. The administration is asked to prepare a list of houses which do not have gas cylinders. They don’t ask whom they are voting for. This is the thing which all the women have realised, and this is going to bring a change of heart. The ease of living that PM Modi has provided to weaker sections, why should it not be provided to people in a place like Howrah?
There is a fear among the people. They are neither able to speak against Trinamool Congress, nor they are free to express their opinion.
This has been their modus operandi—through terror, pressure tactics, intimidation, threats, and lurement. That is why the common voter is hesitant to speak openly. But when he goes for the secret ballot, he will express his mind. Sure, whatever the pressure tactics by the TMC Government or its workers, the voter has made up his mind to bring about a change.
Muslim appeasement is the biggest factor in Bengal. Whenever an election happens, Mamata Banerjee appeases Muslims, but there is no development for them. So the fact of the matter is that this appeasement is only for the vote bank, not for their development. How is BJP planning to address this?
Now, the Muslim community has also begun to realise this. I went for the election in Uttar Pradesh this time and also earlier in the Assembly election. If you go there and ask the Muslim leaders, they are more vocal. They will tell you that they are happier after Yogiji took over as UP CM. Many women are happy with even triple talaq. Women of Muslim community members may not say so openly for multiple reasons, but inside, their homes they feel they are more secure and have benefited immersely. If the Ujjwala gas cylinder has reached, it has reached equally to Muslims. The Muslim community has equally benefited as any other community. Unfortunately, Bengal has not allowed the central schemes to be implemented in full spirit. In some states, you will see entire colonies of Muslims have been converted from Kacha houses to Pacca houses. They may not have even voted for BJP earlier. Now, their conscience may be asking them to have a change of heart.
How many seats will NDA get this time in Bharat and Bengal?
We have set a target of 35 seats in Bengal and in Bharat Abki Baar 400 Paar .
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