Trinamul national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee on Saturday accused the BJP of lying about the Citizenship (Amendment) Act and asked why the Centre was taking so much time to frame the rules for implementation of the contentious law.
“Rules for almost all the acts passed so far in Parliament have been framed within a month.... It was in December 2019 that the Citizenship Amendment Bill was passed in Parliament. Three years have passed, yet no rule has been framed.... It is only because they are lying and have nothing to offer,” the Diamond Harbour MP told a public meeting in the Coopers area of Nadia’s Ranaghat, a Matua belt.
The CAA promises fast-tracked Indian citizenship to Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians coming to India from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan. The act, which leaves out Muslims, had sparked protests across the country.
Abhishek was in Nadia as part of his preparations for the panchayat polls. The focus of his visits in the first leg are areas where Trinamul had performed poorly in recent polls.
In the 2021 Assembly polls, Trinamul had lost all seven Assembly segments under the Matua-dominated Ranaghat parliamentary seat. The result had been the same in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, when the BJP, riding its “citizenship” assurance, managed to wean the Matuas away from Trinamul.
On Saturday, Abhishek acknowledged that a section of party workers and elected representatives at the local level had committed mistakes and apologised for their wrongdoings.
To regain the support of the Matuas, Trinamul has decided to highlight the delay in the CAA implementation. Last month, chief minister Mamata Banerjee had visited Ranaghat and urged the Matuas not to be “misled” by the BJP and to repose faith in her.
A source said a Trinamul survey had pointed to rampant police harassment of Matuas over identity verification for passports. Abhishek said the problem would be solved within “three months”.
“I know that you face problems in verification of passports.... You are often harassed by the DIB officials of Ranaghat, Krishnagar and Bongaon.... I seek three months’ times from you to simplify the process so that the problem is solved,” he said.
Abhishek instructed party workers and elected representatives to ensure transparency in their work at the grassroots level.
He apologised for the “inhuman and corrupt practices” of a section of party leaders that prompted people to turn away from Trinamul in the last two elections in Ranaghat.
“People have turned away from us because of a handful of party workers... I won’t let it continue,” he said, adding that people would recommend candidates for nomination in the panchayat elections.
Abhishek asked Tatla panchayat pradan Partha Pratim De in Chakdah to submit his resignation by Monday since he had failed to live up to the expectations of the people.
“Our party is in a process of transition and no violence and malpractice i n the panchayat elections will be tolerated,” Abhishek said.
