New Delhi: Trinamool Congress General Secretary and Lok Sabha MP Abhishek Banerjee on Wednesday expressed confidence that the Opposition coalition will gain momentum after the upcoming state Assembly elections. He anticipates that these polls will result in significant losses for the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in key states.
Banerjee believes that the current BJP-led coalition government at the Center will not last beyond the next year. Assembly elections in Haryana, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, and Jammu-Kashmir (UT) are scheduled for later this year.
While speaking in New Delhi, Banerjee expressed confidence in the BJP’s approaching defeat in these states. At the same time, he criticised the Central government for what he sees as unfair treatment, specifically the withholding of funds earmarked for states under various Central schemes. The Trinamool Congress (TMC) has been pushing for the release of these funds since 2022. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has repeatedly called for the disbursement of blocked funds, particularly those under the MGNREGA and other programs. She claims that the Centre owes a substantial sum of Rs. 1.16 lakh crore to the state, with Rs. 6,911 crore specifically for MGNREGA work.
The standoff between the West Bengal government and the Narendra Modi-led Central government has been ongoing for over two years, with significant funds withheld for critical rural welfare schemes such as MGNREGA, the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY), the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana, the National Health Mission (NHM), the Jal Jeevan Mission, and others. Abhishek Banerjee claimed that despite the state submitting a comprehensive list of over 11 lakh beneficiaries for PMAY within a month, as required, the Centre has yet to approve it. He said that the state government will proceed with providing houses to the beneficiaries regardless.
Banerjee attributed the BJP’s loss in more Lok Sabha seats in West Bengal to the non-release of Central funds, asserting that West Bengal tested PM Modi. He also credited his outreach campaign, ‘NoboJowar Yatra’, for strengthening the TMC’s connection with the people and enhancing the party’s organisational structure.
Over the past year, Abhishek Banerjee has frequently criticised the ruling government for various policies. Following the presentation of the Union Budget by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Banerjee reiterated his demand for a white paper in Parliament, insisting on transparency and factual data in ministerial speeches. He countered Sitharaman’s claims that the Bengal government failed to utilize allocated funds over the past decade, challenging the Union government to substantiate their allegations with a white paper.
Banerjee also highlighted the alleged ill-treatment of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee at a recent Niti Aayog meeting, where she was reportedly given only two minutes to speak, compared to the 20 minutes allotted to other CMs. He condemned this as an injustice to the state. Additionally, he criticised the Union government for neglecting Bengal in the Budget speech, suggesting that funds might be misallocated to projects like bridge construction in Bihar, which he implied were prone to collapse. Banerjee accused the government of suppressing the poor and the media, further intensifying his critique of the central administration.