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Headlines

Mamata a roadblock to Bengal's growth: Modi

Siliguri, April 3 

Terming West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee a "speed-breaker" in the way of rapid development in the state, Prime Minister Narendra Modi here on Wednesday said she was not interested in eliminating poverty as her brand of politics would then come to an end.

"I regret the speed with which we worked in other states, we could not achieve in Bengal," Modi said while addressing a rally in support of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidates for the Lok Sabha elections.

"In West Bengal, there is a speed-breaker in the way of your development. People here know this speed-breaker as Didi (as Banerjee is affectionately called)," he said.

Going all out against Banerjee, he said acting as a "speed-breaker", she hindered a number of central welfare schemes in the state, like Ayushman Bharat, PM-KISAN, and Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016.

Alleging that Banerjee has no concern for the poor, Modi said she was proficient in playing the politics of the poor. "How can she work for ending poverty? If poverty is obliterated, Didi's politics will also come to an end," Modi said.

Attacking the Congress and the Communists, the Prime Minister said they share the same trait. "They need poverty. They need the poor. Their political gain is in keeping the people in poverty. This is the reason they have put brakes on development."

Modi said these parties have hatched a conspiracy to prevent the poor from benefiting from development.

Terming the Trinamool Congress, the Communist Party of India-Marxist and the Congress as "many sides of the same coin", Modi said those parties should know that their fight was against an honest "chowkidar".

Visibly happy at the huge turnout, Modi said Banerjee's boat had sunk. "Had I not seen the sea of humanity here, I couldn't have even fathomed that Didi's boat has sunk. Your warnings have reached Didi's ears. Your love and enthusiasm (for BJP) will give her sleepless nights," he said.

"I salute Bengal by bowing my head for giving me so much love," Modi said.

The Prime Minister said the people of Bengal have lost their money in multiple chit fund scams and accused Trinamool MPs and ministers of looting the poor. "There have been chit fund scams in Bengal. Didi's ministers, MPs and aids looted the poor in the name of running chit fund and ran away."

He said despite stiff resistance from Banerjee, the central government was doing its best to spread development in the state, including education for tribal children, jobs for youth, toilets and LPG connections to every household.