Shimla: On Monday, Union Minister Anurag Thakur blasted the administration of West Bengal led by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, claiming that violence, appeasement, disorder, and corruption have become the "new normal" in the state.
At a rally in Kangra, Thakur said that West Bengal was "on fire" because of the "cut-money issue" and "cash for jobs scam" rumours. The state that raised Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose and Rabindranath Tagore, Thakur said, was receiving a bad rap.
The government of Bengal, led by Mamata didi, is on fire. Bengali self-respect and esteem have also been destroyed. "Bengal, once famous for Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, Rabindranath Tagore, Shyama Prasad Mookerjee, and Swami Vivekananda, is now getting a bad rap," the Union minister said.
"Violence, appeasement, anarchy, and corruption has become the new normal for Bengal," he continued.
I say this because as soon as news of the panchayat elections spread, violence flared out again in Bengal. When J P Nadda visited here in Himachal Pradesh, you showered him with flower petals, yet in Bengal, he was met with violence. The distinction lies here. Thakur stated, "Bengal is notorious for cut-money, and it's also notorious for cash-for-jobs."
The minister was also critical of the Lalu Prasad Yadav administration in Bihar.
"Rs 4 lakh for the safai karmachari position, and Rs 5 lakh for the clerk position. Mamata didi and Laluji both agree on this point. The exchange in Bengal is monetary while in Bihar it is real estate. This took place during the rule of Laluji. The senior BJP leader warned that because of their corrupt policies, their governments would forever be stigmatised.—Inputs from Agencies