Trinamul Congress Holds Dharna in Delhi to Protest Centre's 'Step-Motherly Treatment' of Bengal

To protest the Narendra Modi administration's alleged stepmotherly treatment of Bengal, the Trinamul Congress held a dharna on Monday at Rajghat in New Delhi.

Abhishek Banerjee, the national general secretary of Trinamul, and the nephew of chief minister Mamata Banerjee organized the first event of this kind in the nation's capital.

As part of a multi-pronged agitation campaign in Delhi, the party's MPs, ministers, and other top figures staged a sit-in protest to press their primary demand—the delivery of funds owed to the state by the BJP-led Centre. According to Trinamul, Bengal owes the central government more than Rs 1.15 lakh crore in debt, of which about Rs 15,000 crore is due to the 100-day employment guarantee program and rural housing alone.

"Bengal has had its rights continuously violated for the past two years... In a brief press conference held at Rajghat following the dharna, Abhishek stated that people have lost their lives as a result of the central government's conceit and determination to deny the people of Bengal their dues.

A police intervention that Trinamul described as a "condemnable, planned, deliberate disruption of peace" forced the media contact to be terminated.

Later, Abhishek claimed that the "scared" saffron camp had unleashed 50,000 police officers against fewer than 500 Trinamul leaders.

"Mahatma Gandhi, who fought for the country's independence, is honored with the MGNREGA's name. We intended for our battle to begin with a flower homage to the leader. We began our nonviolent sit-in protest. However, (central forces) and Delhi police continued to beat up our citizens, especially ladies, Abhishek continued. "Mahatma Gandhi is the pride of the nation, and no single group can have ownership over his legacy."

Giriraj Singh, the union's minister for rural development, along with a few other top figures, including Anurag Thakur and the saffron camp in Bengal, issued sharp retorts throughout the day to refute Abhishek's assertions and the legality of the Trinamul-led rallies.

Call to "Change Modi"

This was Trinamul's biggest performance in the capital, but Abhishek, not his aunt, was in charge and launched a direct attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, which was the theme of the newly formed INDIA coalition.

The Diamond Harbour MP accused the saffron regime of taking the residents of the state for granted and criticized their "anti-Bengal" attitude in a bellicose statement asserting the party's right to seek justice for Bengal's poor masses.

"Show me the corruption if you can. Why do you refuse to award grants? Bengali people shouldn't suffer just because they didn't support the BJP, said Abhishek.

"Even though this is your home field and you are the referee, the Trinamul Congress challenges you..." The people will now change the Prime Minister (Modi), who adores altering everything, including the Parliament, banknotes, place names, and historical events," he continued.

"Now is the proper time to democratically replace the Prime Minister."

Tuesday's conflict

The thousands of Bengali MGNREGS employment card holders that his party bused into Delhi and who would be escorted to Jantar Mantar, one of the most visible protest locations in Delhi, on Tuesday were warned by Abhishek about being mistreated by the saffron ecosystem.

The day before the event, when Modi was squandering resources to feed his ego, Abhishek tried to construct his story around Bengal's suffering.

"The Prime Minister's house cost Rs 20,000 crore to build, but the average person only received Rs 1.5 lakh for their homes." He says nothing about Manipur; instead, the forces under their leadership are sent to attack us during our peaceful protests, he said, alluding to the clashes at Rajghat between protesters and Delhi police.

"If they beat up Trinamul leaders, we will put up with the attacks. However, he continued, "If the common people are insulted, I will answer in the only language that the BJP speaks.

A team will meet junior Union rural development minister Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti at Krishi Bhavan at 6.30 pm following the Jantar Mantar program, which starts at 1 pm.

long conflict

Since the saffron regime's "fear" of the demonstration in the national capital was apparent, Abhishek explained to senior Trinamul leaders in closed-door talks on Sunday and Monday that he was hesitant to let this movement peter out right away.

According to reports, he informed his coworkers that the decision regarding the following steps would be made following the Krishi Bhavan meeting. According to party sources, he would like to hold agitational events in Delhi up until Divali if necessary.

"Let's see how the meeting goes first. After a meeting behind closed doors at MP Sudip Bandyopadhyay's home in Delhi, Abhishek responded to a question from journalists by saying, "We will announce future programs if the Centre remains hesitant to agree to our demands for the people.

Political lesson

According to a political analyst, Abhishek was able to reinforce the foundations for developing a significant portion of the Trinamul campaign for 2024 in Bengal over the theme of alleged mass deprivation by the BJP-led Centre with the Delhi event.

Bengal's general election is likely to center on the BJP-led major campaign issue of purported corruption under the Trinamul rule, while Mamata would lead a narrative of Delhi's "step-motherly attitude" toward the state.

This narrative "could go a long way in making a major difference in the outcome next year," said a Trinamul MP, "given how crucial the electoral support of the vast sections of the deprived people that depend on MGNREGS, Awas Yojana, and other such schemes is."

The BJP is making every effort to refute whatever claims we make in this forum because it is acutely aware of this, he continued. "Despite Didi's (Mamata) sad absence, Abhishek gave an outstanding performance in the lead role. After her, he is now another prominent figure in the country for our party.

Footnote

While Trinamul was confident in its ability to gain political advantages, several of its leaders suffered setbacks on the first day of the demonstration. In the altercation between the crowd and the police, ministers Aroop Biswas and Sujit Bose claimed to have lost their shoes while MPs Satabdi Roy and Santanu Sen claimed to have lost their telephones. Ghulam Rabbani, a member of their government, briefly misplaced his vehicle.