Trinamool Congress leader Abhishek Banerjee on Thursday accused the Narendra Modi government of failing to press the Bangladesh interim government to stop alleged atrocities against minorities in the neighbouring country.
“We want the Centre to engage with the interim government in Bangladesh and ensure action against those responsible for hooliganism, terror, torture, robberies and attacks on innocent minorities like Hindus, whose houses have been demolished and temples ransacked,” Abhishek said at Diamond Harbour after inaugurating Sebaashray, a new health outreach initiative for his parliamentary constituency.
“The Centre must compel the interim government to take stringent action against those who terrorise and intimidate minorities daily,” said the national general secretary of the TMC.
“Our Prime Minister often boasts of his 56-inch chest. We want to see him respond to Bangladesh in a language they understand. What’s stopping them? Before the Lok Sabha elections, the BJP was vocal about the NRC and the CAA, but now, when Hindus are being tortured in Bangladesh, they are silent. Is it because there is no election now? Since August 5, there has been anarchy in Bangladesh and the Centre hasn’t even spared five minutes to address it.”
He mocked the BJP by highlighting the purported disparity between the party’s words and actions.
“Their rhetoric must align with their actions. They once talked about punishing criminals by hanging them upside down, but now, despite ongoing atrocities against minorities in Bangladesh, they remain silent,” said Abhishek.
He called upon Bengal BJP leaders to ask the Centre to act.
“State BJP leaders, who stage protests against Trinamool over various issues, are conspicuously silent on the inadequate response of the (Narendra) Modi government to the atrocities in Bangladesh. They should demand a robust and vocal response from their central leadership,” he said.
Abhishek also criticised the Centre for not briefing Parliament on the foreign secretary’s recent visit to Dhaka. “It is a norm that if any official visits a foreign country during a Parliament session, the Centre updates the House on the discussions. Unfortunately, the foreign minister, defence minister or even the Prime Minister didn’t speak on the matter this time,” Abhishek said.
“The BJP claims ‘nation first,’ but where is that reflected in their actions regarding Bangladesh? Did you ever hear before 2014 about a country like Bangladesh threatening India?” he asked.
The TMC leader emphasised India’s pivotal role in Bangladesh’s history.
“If India weren’t there, Bangladesh would have turned into Pakistan. They wouldn’t even have achieved independence. Those ignoring India’s contribution and history are setting themselves up for a grim fate. They are torturing their people while demeaning and threatening a country that played a crucial role in their liberation,” the MP said.
Referring to the fresh denial of bail to Hindu monk Chinmoy Krishna Das on Thursday, Abhishek said: “The collapse of a country is inevitable if its judiciary becomes weak. If the judiciary is not impartial or neutral, or if it operates under fear, the collapse of that society or country becomes unavoidable.”
Sebaashray
Health camps will be conducted in the Diamond Harbour Lok Sabha constituency under the Sebaashray scheme and patients requiring advanced care will be referred to 12 designated hospitals.
Over the next 75 days, around 300 health camps will be organised in 71 gram panchayats and 93 municipality wards in the seven Assembly segments of Diamond Harbour.
Abhishek said: “Apart from free medical treatment, people will receive medicines at no cost. Every patient will be issued a unique token ID upon registration and provided with an awareness and guidelines booklet, which will also include space for prescriptions.”
He said patients would have access to BMI examinations, blood pressure checks, diabetes and haemoglobin tests, and malaria and dengue screenings among others.
