TMC must be removed from power to end infiltration, ensure Bengal’s development: PM

Kolkata, Aug 22 (PTI) Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday mounted a blistering attack on the TMC, accusing it of promoting infiltration in West Bengal to fulfil its “hunger for power”, and asserted that the party has to be voted out of power to end illegal immigration and ensure the state’s development.

Modi warned that the border state was staring at a “social crisis” with its demography being altered, land of farmers and tribals encroached upon, and the economy put under strain, owing to infiltration.

Addressing a packed rally at Dum Dum in North 24 Parganas district, he urged the people of Bengal to utilise their votes in next year’s assembly polls as a weapon to oust both infiltrators and the ruling dispensation, alleging that the TMC’s “politics of appeasement” had endangered the state’s security and throttled its development.

He accused the TMC of blocking central schemes, stalling urban growth and betraying its core slogan of ‘Maa, Mati, Manush’ (Mother, Land and People) that had once propelled it to power in the eastern state.

“This country can no longer tolerate infiltrators. We will not allow them to stay in India. Those who have come here to snatch the livelihood of our people by fraudulently obtaining documents... they will have to leave. And for this task to be completed honestly, the TMC government will also have to go,” Modi said.

“This time, from the Red Fort, I spoke about a very significant concern of the nation. Farmers are being deceived, their land encroached upon, tribals misled for seizing their land. This must be stopped. I have, therefore, announced a special demography mission against infiltration,” the PM said.

The power to address this issue doesn’t rest solely with Modi or the BJP, “it rests with you and the impact of your votes”, he asserted.

The prime minister said infiltrators were “torturing our mothers and sisters,” and warned that the border districts of Bengal were witnessing a dangerous demographic shift.

“The way the demography is being altered in the border areas, it is also creating a social crisis in West Bengal,” he claimed.

Referring to global developments, Modi said that “even the so-called developed countries have upped their ante against infiltrators. These countries, despite having no shortage of resources, can no longer tolerate infiltrators”.

Seeking to strike a chord with Bengali identity, he emphasised his government’s contribution to the promotion of the Bangla language.

“The BJP government is committed to empowering the Bangla language and culture. It is our privilege that we have been given the opportunity to grant the Bangla language the status of a Classical Language,” he said.

The PM also accused the Mamata Banerjee government of obstructing central welfare schemes and stalling urban growth.

“Dum Dum is one of the most crowded areas. The Smart City Mission is underway across the country for urban development. But, the TMC government has refused to even join this mission. People continue to face inconvenience, development remains stalled, but the TMC’s mission is to somehow stop the BJP, to stop the central government’s schemes,” he alleged.

Modi said that Bengal has suffered under decades of Congress, Left, and TMC rule, and was in dire need of a fresh start.

“Since Independence, the state has experienced extended periods of governance under the Congress and later the Left. Fifteen years ago, the people of West Bengal sought change and placed their faith in the slogan ‘Maa, Mati, Manush’. However, the situation has deteriorated significantly since then,” he said.

“The future of the state’s youth has been jeopardised by the recruitment scam, while incidents of crimes against women have escalated. Corruption and lawlessness have become emblematic of the TMC rule. It is evident that the progress and development of West Bengal will remain stunted as long as it remains in power,” the PM asserted.

Modi said the BJP has a solid plan and a roadmap for the development of West Bengal.

“But, the TMC is an enemy of development,” he said, calling for a “transformative change” in the state.

The rally took place against the backdrop of TMC’s protests over alleged harassment of Bengali-speaking migrants in BJP-ruled states such as Assam, Odisha, Delhi, Maharashtra and Gujarat. Banerjee and her party have alleged that these migrants were being branded “illegal Bangladeshis” and targeted for detentions and linguistic profiling.

The BJP, in turn, has sought to sharpen its counter-narrative, portraying itself as the custodian of Bengal’s pride and development, while accusing the TMC of “appeasement” and “identity mobilisation”.

The TMC had successfully used the Bengali identity plank to blunt the BJP’s Hindutva pitch in the 2021 assembly polls, but this time, Modi sought to turn the tables by linking infiltration to both demography and development.

“Every person in Bengal today is saying, only when the TMC goes will real change come,” Modi said, urging voters ahead of the 2026 assembly polls to deliver what he described a long overdue political transformation. PTI PNT RBT