West Bengal’s Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has faced criticism from BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari, who accused her of excessive self-promotion during her speech to protesting junior doctors. Adhikari claims Banerjee referred to herself 76 times in a 9-minute speech, highlighting a perceived lack of empathy during the protests sparked by the brutal murder of a medical student.
Former Bengal Minister and current Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari has repeatedly praised the Mamata Banerjee government’s Lakshmir Bhandar scheme, despite his opposition to most of her policies. He has promised to increase the scheme’s payout three times to Rs 3,000 per beneficiary if elected. Union Home Minister Amit Shah has also pledged to increase the benefit by Rs 100. The scheme, which provides a monthly cash incentive to women below 60, has over 2.11 crore beneficiaries and is considered a game-changer for the Trinamool Congress. The BJP’s focus on Lakshmir Bhandar is seen as an attempt to win over women voters, who constitute nearly 50% of the electorate in Bengal.
Fresh allegations have surfaced in West Bengal, fueling the political rivalry between the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC). The TMC has accused the BJP of fabricating the Sandeshkhali incident, a case involving alleged atrocities against women in a village, to discredit the TMC ahead of the Lok Sabha election. The TMC released a video allegedly featuring Gangadhar Koyal, the BJP Mandal President, in which he claims to have acted on the instructions of Bengal Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari to manipulate the situation and implicate TMC members. The CBI is currently investigating the case, which has brought into focus the alleged exploitation of women in Sandeshkhali. Meanwhile, the BJP has dismissed the video as a fake and has filed a complaint with the CBI, alleging that artificial intelligence was used to manipulate Koyal’s voice. BJP leader Adhikari has also defended himself, stating that he has always stood for truth and will continue to do so.
