A visibly miffed and frustrated Mamata Banerjee has continued her rant against the centre over the issue of National Register of Citizens (NRC) exercise. The NRC is an attempt to rid the state of Assam of illegal immigrants who have disturbed the demographics of the state in a big way for several decades. A draft NRC of Indian citizens living in the state of Assam was prepared under this exercise. The ‘secular’ parties came together for protesting against this exercise of driving out illegal Bangladeshi immigrants. At the helm of these protests has been West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee whose principal vote bank, the illegal immigrants are going to be badly affected by this exercise. Despite the centre making it clear that no Indian citizen will be troubled by this exercise, these secular parties have been trying to mislead the general public and create panic by claiming that even Indian citizens will be driven out by this exercise.
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In her latest offensive against the centre, she has dared the Modi government to conduct a similar exercise in the state of West Bengal. Mamata Benerjee was addressing a rally held in Kolkata to commemorate the foundation day of the Trinamool Chhatra Parishad, the student’s wing of the Trinamool Congress. She went on to say, “They (Bharatiya Janata Party) are trying to wrongfully evict many people from Assam. Some are even threatening to evict people from Bengal through a similar exercise here. I dare them to lay a finger on us. They will understand what Bengal is made of,” thereby clearly pitching the people of West Bengal against the centre. This obnoxious language goes on to suggest that Mamata Banerjee will instigate people of West Bengal against the centre if the Modi government tries to drive illegal Bangladeshi immigrants out of West Bengal. Speaking in a violent tone in a striking similarity to her cadres (read goons), Mamata said that Bengal has protested against the NRC in Assam and will continue to do so. And if a single Indian citizen is driven out, “we will not spare them.” She also said, “They say they will start the exercise (NRC) in Bengal. I want to see who dares to do that. We are Bengal tigers. It will not be so easy. Before you start anything here, remember that your days will be finished in 2019. The BJP will be finished in 2019.” It is deplorable by even her standards how she is misleading the people of West Bengal and trying to abet them against the centre in a very violent and objectionable language.
This is not for the first time that the TMC supremo has gone overboard in her criticism of the NRC. In the recent past as well, Mamata Banerjee has given open threats of “civil war” and “bloodbath” over the issue of NRC. This time around she has challenged national sovereignty of India itself by implying that no one can dare to drive illegal immigrants out of West Bengal. She is acting as if West Bengal is an independent sovereign nation in itself and is assuming to herself the absolute right to govern West Bengal. However, West Bengal is an integral part of India and the centre has every right to launch an NRC in West Bengal as well. When it comes to conducting such an exercise, Mamata Banerjee is absolutely no one. She is only making a mockery of herself by daring the centre. If the Modi government wants to conduct an NRC, it will be conducted anyway and she will not be able to do anything at all. Driving out illegal Bangladeshi immigrants is a sovereign right of India and no one including Mamata Banerjee can overpower it.
