PM cites Malda gherao to brand TMC rule ‘Maha Jungleraj’
COOCH BEHAR: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said that the 33 per cent reservation for women in the Lok Sabha and state assemblies would start benefiting them from the 2029 parliamentary polls, as he sought to weaken West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s strongest electoral constituency.
Addressing his first rally in north Bengal after the poll schedule was announced, Modi turned the sprawling ground in Cooch Behar into a direct appeal to Bengal’s women, invoking the state’s tradition of “Shakti” worship, citing the Sandeshkhali outrage and projecting the BJP as the guarantor of “security, dignity and empowerment” for women.
“It is important for the country that women have a greater role in decisions made for the country. Therefore, our government has enacted a law providing 33 per cent reservation for women in the Lok Sabha and state assemblies,” Modi said.
In what could have major political implications in a state where women constitute nearly half the electorate and have emerged as the backbone of the TMC’s electoral dominance, the PM said the NDA government was now trying to ensure that the quota law passed in 2023 comes into force from the next Lok Sabha election.
“The sisters of West Bengal and of the entire country should begin getting its benefit from the 2029 Lok Sabha elections itself. We are trying to ensure this. Therefore, the government has convened a special session of Parliament this month,” he said.
“This right of mothers and sisters has been pending for 40 years. There should not be any further delay,” he added, in remarks that appeared aimed as much at the opposition parties as at women voters across the country.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju had indicated in Rajya Sabha on Thursday that Parliament would meet again soon to consider a key legislation.
The Budget session of Parliament has been extended for three more days and will reconvene on April 16 after a brief recess, with the Centre planning to bring legislation to raise the number of Lok Sabha seats from 543 to 816.
The proposed increase in seats is aimed at facilitating implementation of the women’s reservation law enacted in 2023.
As the crowd, dotted with large numbers of women from Cooch Behar and adjoining districts, responded with chants of “Modi, Modi”, the Prime Minister appealed to them to mount pressure on political parties to back the measure.
“We want to put a firm stamp in Parliament on increasing additional seats for women, so that the states get the full benefit of it. This is the work of the whole country. It is not the work of any one party. Therefore, we have held discussions with all parties. I urge all parties to come together and unanimously support this cause for women’s rights,” he said.
Modi also sought to assuage fears over the issue from the rally stage.
“From Cooch Behar, I again assure all the states of the country that those states which have done good work in population control will suffer no loss in terms of seats. Everyone will benefit. The participation and rights of all states will remain protected,” he said.
Women voters, who have in recent years turned out in greater numbers than men in Bengal, are now regarded by all parties as the state’s most decisive electoral bloc.
According to Election Commission data after the special intensive revision of electoral rolls, the number of women electors is around 3.44 crore, against 3.60 crore male voters, in a total electorate of 7.04 crore.
Over the last decade, women have emerged as the central pillar of Mamata Banerjee’s political coalition, driven by welfare schemes such as Lakshmir Bhandar, Kanyashree and Swasthya Sathi.
The BJP, which has struggled to breach that support base despite making major gains among male and younger voters, has in recent months sharpened its campaign around women-centric themes- from law and order to financial empowerment.
Sunday’s speech was perhaps the clearest sign yet of that strategy.
“Our Bengal is the land of the worship of Shakti. I want to tell all the sisters and daughters here, and every woman in Bengal, that the BJP is in the field for your honour and prosperity,” Modi said.
“If a BJP government comes in Bengal, it will open the path to the true empowerment of women. And this is our track record. That is why today, across the country, the first choice of women is the BJP.”
Seeking to contrast the BJP’s pitch with the ruling TMC, Modi once again invoked Sandeshkhali, where allegations of sexual abuse and land grab had become a major campaign issue during the last Lok Sabha elections.
“On one side, there are the screams of sisters as in Sandeshkhali and the brutal atrocities on daughters. On the other side is Modi’s guarantee of security, dignity and empowerment for women,” he said.
The PM also highlighted what he described as the Centre’s record in economically empowering women.
Assembly polls for the 294-member assembly in the state will be held on April 23 and April 29. Votes will be counted on May 4.
Meanwhile, PM Modi today turned the Malda gherao of judicial officers into the fulcrum of the BJP’s campaign on lawlessness in West Bengal, calling it a sign of TMC’s “maha jungleraj” and pitching the assembly polls as a contest between the “bhay” spread by the ruling party and the BJP’s “bharosa”.
Addressing his first election rally in Bengal in Cooch Behar after the poll schedule was announced, Modi used the Malda incident to sharpen the BJP’s twin campaign planks of deteriorating law and order and alleged demographic change, while also invoking Sandeshkhali, infiltration from Bangladesh, corruption and unemployment to mount a broadside against the Mamata Banerjee government.
Modi framed the coming electoral contest as a decisive battle for the state’s future, warning that “chun chun ke hisab hoga” (everything will be accounted for) for the alleged atrocities committed by TMC goons once the rule of law prevails after May 4.
“This cruel government is staining democracy with blood every day on the sacred soil of Bengal. This government does not care for any constitutional institution,” Modi said.
“Two or three days ago, the whole country saw how judicial officers were held hostage in Malda. What kind of government is this? What kind of system is this where even judges and the constitutional process are not safe? How can such people ensure the safety of Bengal’s common people?” he said.
The Prime Minister was referring to Wednesday night’s incident at Malda’s Kaliachak-II block office, where seven judicial officers, including three women, were gheraoed for hours by a mob during hearings on names marked “under adjudication” in the draft electoral rolls prepared during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise.
“What happened in Malda was not merely the arrogance of the TMC. It was the sponsored ‘maha jungleraj’ of this cruel TMC government. Whenever the noose of justice tightens around the TMC, it tries to strangle constitutional institutions,” Modi alleged.
He claimed that the situation had become so grave that even the Supreme Court had to intervene and accused the ruling party of being “bent on carrying out the funeral procession of law and order” in Bengal.
Modi also sought to frame the contest in binary terms.
On one side, there is the ‘bhay’ (fear) of the TMC, and on the other side, you have the BJP’s ‘bharosa’ (trust). On one side is the fear of TMC’s cut money and corruption, and on the other side is the BJP which accelerates development,” he said.
The PM also contrasted the fear of infiltration and settling foreigners in Bengal with the BJP’s confidence in stopping infiltration and driving infiltrators out.
“On one side is the fear of losing freedom on one’s own land because of changing demography. On the other side is BJP’s confidence of living with pride on one’s own soil, and head held high,” he said.
