Lok Sabha Polls: Sandeshkhali Storm Will Sweep Through Bengal, Says PM Modi; What Was 2019 Tally?

Kolkata: Sandeshkhali, a village in West Bengal’s North 24 Parganas district, has been in the headlines for nearly two months due to Trinamool Congress leader Sheikh Shahjahan’s alleged notoriety and his evading arrest for 55 days.

The Opposition had been targeting ruling party Trinamool Congress (TMC) for standing by Shahjahan, against whom there were multiple charges of sexual assault.

On Wednesday, even Prime Minister Narendra Modi tore into Mamata Banerjee’s party over the Sandeshkhali issue, saying that the women’s rage there will sweep through West Bengal.

“TMC has committed a grave sin by torturing mothers and sisters. Anybody’s head will hang in shame after seeing what happened in Sandeshkhali. But the TMC is not bothered about your pain. The TMC-government is using its full strength to shield the culprits. But the state government first got a shock from the high court and then the Supreme Court,” Modi said ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.

Modi, who met five women who had come from Sandeshkhali, was addressing a Nari Shakti Vandan rally organised by BJP at Barasat.

“The women’s rage will not be confined to Sandeshkhali. The storm of Sandeshkhali will sweep through Bengal. I can see that Bengal’s nari shakti has come out to put an end to TMC’s mafiaraj. The TMC has faith in their tyrant leaders. They don’t have faith in the sisters and daughters of Bengal,” the PM said.

West Bengal is one of BJP’s unconquered states, and the saffron party will leave no stone unturned to make a big dent in the upcoming general election, two years before Bengal Assembly polls are due.

Five years ago, BJP had given TMC a run for their money by winning 18 seats out of 42 in West Bengal in the Lok Sabha elections. TMC triumphed in 22 constituencies, Congress bagged just 2 while CPI(M) drew a blank.

However, TMC underlined its domination in the 2021 Assembly polls with almost a three-fourths majority – bagging 215 constituencies out of 294. BJP emerged as the only Opposition party with 77 seats, reducing Congress and CPI(M) to zero.

All eyes will be on Bengal to see if BJP can topple TMC’s applecart this time.