Amit Shah had a challenger with the same first name on Tuesday.

A visibly prepared Trinamul Congress — assisted by Team Prashant Kishor — took on the BJP’s challenge and worked hard on social media to discredit Union home minister Amit Shah and his virtual rally, before fielding state finance minister Amit Mitra to counter the BJP’s “jumla” with figures.

Lambasting Shah for prioritising electoral politics during the pandemic and in the wake of Cyclone Amphan, Mitra said: “I challenge Mr. Shah… to respond. Where is that cash?”

Trinamul started its “virtual attack” a short while before the Union home minister’s virtual rally began.

Mamata Banerjee’s party, backed by poll strategist Kishor’s Indian Political Action Committee, made hashtags such as #BengalRejectsAmitShah and #BanglaChaaynaAmitShah (Bengal doesn’t want Amit Shah) trend with tens of thousands of tweets on Twitter throughout the event, at times bettering the mega machinery of saffron propaganda.

But the “masterstroke”, according to a Bengal minister, was the idea of fielding state finance minister Amit Shah to call Shah out on his “lies”. “Shah had dared Didi (Mamata) to come out with figures to counter him. Our Amit’s figures badly exposed their Amit’s jumla,” said the minister.

Excerpts from Mitra’s rebuttal:

The tendency to ‘copy’:

On December 30, 2016, the honourable chief minister (Mamata) introduced a scheme called Swasthya Sathi, covering 1.5 crore families, 7.5 crore people, so that their medical needs and treatment are taken care of. Benefit of Rs 5 lakh, with 1,518 network hospitals.

Almost two years later, Ayushman Bharat was suddenly heard of...it was but a poor attempt to copy. Our achievements are there on record. Imitation masters. No thoughts of your own?

The peddling of ‘lies’:

He (Shah) said 7.66 crore people are being helped through the PDS. What is the truth? It is 6.01 crore people. Why was the number inflated? Jhoot, jhoot. Our government here has been giving free food grains to 4.09 crore for three months and will do so for six months. You forgot? Will the people forget, you think?

When we (Trinamul) came to power, there were 75 lakh consumers of power in the state, in 2011. That number is over 2 crore — 1.95 crore households — now. Also probably the only state that is power surplus and no power cuts. Total amount from the Centre since 2011, Rs 5,800 crore for the sector. The state invested Rs 27,500 crore in the same time span.

What Amit (Shah) did omit:

Rs 53,000 crore in dues to state, left unpaid by the Centre. Of that, Rs 36,000 crore, directly for centrally supported schemes and central schemes. Besides, GST dues, food subsidy dues and Rs 11,000 crore in devolution. Rs 1,000 crore given so far for superstorm Amphan. When you are addressing Bengal, release a tranche of that Rs 53,000 crore, Rs 15,000 crore, at least.

The state of the economy:

In 2018, due to demonetisation and unprepared GST...2 crore jobs were lost, according to the CMIE.

Now, for seven consecutive quarters, there has been a decline in GDP growth, all pre-Covid. January to March quarters, 3.1 per cent growth, lowest in 11 years. Unemployment rate, in 2018, was the lowest in 45 years.

Today, after Covid-19, it is 23.5 per cent nationally. In Bengal, it is 17.4 per cent, in big BJP-ruled states Karnataka, 20.4, Uttar Pradesh, 21, Madhya Pradesh, 27, Haryana, 35.

All countries in the world are giving 50 per cent in cash…. What did you give? She (Mamata) had said, “big zero”.

Fiscal stimulus? The US gave 2.2 trillion dollars. Economists are now debating whether it (India’s) was 0.9 per cent of GDP or 1.1 per cent? Ten per cent? A hoax.

Say it, ‘we will not give cash’. Migrant workers stand denied.

The whole world is giving cash. Why? Demand will return. The moment demand returns, supply will respond. As soon as that happens, investments will start.

What is actually happening? Banks are putting money back into the RBI. Yes, banks returned Rs 6.3 lakh crore to the RBI…. Because they do not have faith in India’s leadership…. Hence, risk-averse.

Responding to Mitra’s rebuttal, BJP state unit Dilip Ghosh said later that he does not believe in what the state finance minister has to say.

“I have no faith in those figures. This state government has no credibility,” said the Midnapore MP.