‘SIR was conducted to help BJP capture Bengal’: Mamata mounts attack on EC

She said countrywide protests will continue until Kumar resigns.

“SIR was conducted in Bengal to capture the state. Ninety-three lakh names were either deleted or put under adjudication. The government should compensate for the loss of those whose names were struck off,” Banerjee said, adding that her party had earlier raised questions about the role of election official Seema Khanna.

She also alleged that BJP workers had submitted Form 6 applications in bulk bearing the party’s seal, and claimed that her party had preserved evidence of the alleged activity.

“Vanish (Gyanesh) Kumar must go. Until he resigns, our agitation will continue,” Banerjee said.

She also accused the state police of acting at the behest of the ruling BJP in minority-dominated Rejinagar assembly seat in Murshidabad, where a bypoll is due next month.

Claiming that people’s democratic rights were snatched, Banerjee said, “A person’s democratic rights cannot simply be taken away; people cannot be deprived of their voting rights illegally, and no one has the authority to treat citizens as if their rights do not matter.”

Taking potshots at the BJP government, Banerjee said, “This so-called ‘honeymoon phase’ in Bengal has become a phase of intimidation, vandalism, pressure and political interference. If you (BJP) have genuinely won through the votes of the people, then why are you afraid to allow another political party to hold meetings? Democracy cannot function this way. No injustice continues forever; people will eventually speak against injustice.”

Standing alongside Serampore TMC MP and senior advocate Kalyan Banerjee, the former chief minister also sought to position herself as the principal opposition voice on issues affecting street vendors and beneficiaries of welfare schemes.

She alleged that hawkers were being deprived of their livelihood through eviction drives and said she would fight their cases in court with Kalyan Banerjee.

“Everyone has the right to livelihood. It is a democratic right and nobody can be deprived of it,” she said, promising legal support and compensation for affected hawkers.

Banerjee also attacked the BJP over its welfare promises, alleging that assurances made before the Assembly polls had not been fulfilled.

She specifically referred to the Annapurna scheme and claimed that women who had been promised financial assistance were now being denied the benefits.

Banerjee alleged that voter documents of people in Rejinagar and Nandigram were being taken away.

“I have also heard that Aadhaar cards and voter-related documents of families have been taken away. Remember Nandigram…when there was a land movement, we stood by it. At that time it was not a question of whether someone belonged to Congress, the Left or another party, it was a movement for people’s land and people’s rights,” she said.

She also renewed her call for opposition unity, stating that an INDIA bloc meeting is likely to be held in Delhi to discuss EC-related issues and chart out the opposition’s next course of action.

“I sent a message to Rahul Gandhi, and told him that we must sit together. A meeting of the INDIA bloc will most likely be held in Delhi’s Constitution Club on September 30,” she said.

Only CJP can remove CEC: Kalyan Banerjee

TMC MP Kalyan Banerjee on Saturday said only the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) can remove CEC Gyanesh Kumar, while acknowledging the limitations of political parties, including his own.

“If CJP gives a real challenge, they can remove Kumar; no other political party can,” Banerjee told a vernacular news channel.

He was speaking about efforts by opposition parties to protest against the CEC.

He said CJP’s focused approach could help it achieve results quickly. “If CJP does it, there will be quick disposal. They stick with one issue and do it with all their heart and soul,” he said.