Uttarakhand CM Dhami invokes Tagore, Vivekananda, Netaji in Bengal poll pitch

Kolkata, Mar 5 (PTI) Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Thursday alleged that the image of West Bengal, the land associated with luminaries like Swami Vivekananda, Bankimchandra Chattopadhyay, Rabindranath Tagore and Subhas Chandra Bose, has suffered under the "misgovernance" of the Trinamool Congress.

Addressing a rally during the Parivartan Yatra in the remote Hingalganj area of North 24 Parganas district, Dhami alleged that under the "pro-appeasement" TMC government, the number of infiltrators in Bengal has reached an alarming proportion, while law and order has worsened and atrocities against women have increased.

"Bengal, which is the soil of Rabindranath Tagore, Bankimchandra, Vivekananda, Netaji, revolutionaries like Khudiram Bose, is now witnessing heinous incidents like the rape-murder of a woman medic in RG Kar Hospital, torture of poor women in Sandeshkhali and corruption and invalidation of thousands of school teachers’ jobs due to graft committed by TMC leaders. Only BJP can change the situation and restore the state’s glory," he said.

Dhami said Tagore’s dream of ‘Sonar Bangla’ (Golden Bengal) had been tarnished during the TMC’s rule, which only the BJP can restore.

Claiming that the difference in dearness allowance between Bengal government employees and their central counterparts was among the highest in the country, he said, "Once the BJP takes charge of the state, the long-standing demands of state government employees will be addressed." He alleged that despite getting central funds for different projects, the state failed to spend the money, and people were deprived of the benefits.

"Now who is responsible for that?," he asked.

Pointing out the shared heritage between the two states, Dhami said, "While Ganga originates from Gangotri, it passes through Bengal and meets the sea at Gangasagar. So we, the two states, are united by heritage, spirituality, history and by Ganga." Referring to Swami Vivekananda’s historic Chicago speech, he said the Uttarakhand government is developing the place where the saint meditated.

He also cited the efforts of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in building the Ram temple at Ayodhya and said the BJP is committed to preserving and promoting India’s rich spiritual heritage.

Dhami later flagged off a decorated 'rath', a flower-decked truck bathed in saffron hues, and took part in the rally for some time as thousands crowded the route.

The Hingalganj rally, under the Sunderbans belt, was among the nine 'Parivartan yatras' taken out by the BJP from different parts of the state ahead of the Assembly polls in Bengal.

Union minister and former BJP state president Sukanta Majumdar and former MP Locket Chatterjee were also present at the rally. PTI SUS MNB