
Mamata Banerjee slams PM Modi over allegations against her government, says
Kolkata (West Bengal) [India], May 29 (ANI): West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday hit back at Prime Minister Narendra Modi over his allegations against her government including the teacher recruitment scam and said the state government will respect the verdict of court and find some solution.
She accused the BJP of trying to politicise Operation Sindoor and said such remarks are being made when all-party delegations are visiting partner countries.
Mamata Banerjee held a press conference hours after PM Modi's rally in Alipurduar and countered the allegations.
'What Modi ji said today, we are not only shocked but also very sad to hear this, when the Opposition is representing the country...In his presence his minister said that they will do Operation Bengal, like Operation Sindoor. I challenge them - if they have guts, go into elections tomorrow, we are ready and Bengal is ready to accept your challenge. But please remember, time is a factor. You must remember the time. Our representative Abhishek Banerjee is also in the team,' she said.
'And he is speaking every day against terrorism, against terror. At that time, Mr Modi, not as the PM but as the BJP president, you are criticising the Government (in Bengal) which is giving you full support, defending the country like anything. You are accusing the Government and you want to blame the Opposition at this time, at this hour to politicise things just like the leader of BJP Jumla Party...You are doing garbage of lies. They loot the country and scoot. It doesn't look nice to talk in this manner. Regarding Operation Sindoor, though I don't have any comments but please remember every woman has respect,' she added.
The Trinamool Congress chief also hit out at BJP over 'Vyapam scam' in Madhya Pradesh.
'You are talking about the SSC teachers. Who did it? Did we do it or jobs were lost in the court case? Who did the court case, CPM and BJP. What happened in your Vyapam Scam? How many people died because of this in BJP-ruled Madhya Pradesh? In Tripura, your government removed over 10,000 teachers. In UP 69,000 teachers lost thier jobs. We have humanity. We will find out some solution. We will respect the verdict of Court and we will work according to our schemes and policies. Let the Court work impartially,' she said.
She further said that the PM spoke about roads and homes and asked if he gave money to improve infrastructure.
'Did he give the money to built homes? Did he give the money for 100 days of work under MGNREGA? We made over two lakh rural roads. Between last year and this year, we made over 40,000 km long rural roads through state funds. We had to pay for funds under the MGNREGA scheme. We started the 'Banglar Bari (Gramin)' scheme. First, we gave 47 lakh houses when funds were rolled out in 60:40 ratio...why have you stopped the payment for 'Banglar Bari' since last 4 years? Still we have facilitated 28 lakh housing units in last 1-1.5 years,' she said.
'You just want to damage Bengal's education system, healthcare, and economy. Your friends - central agencies - are here to intimidate people. Is this not big-scale corruption?,' she asked.
She also alleged that the BJP is responsible for the incidents in Murshidabad and Malda.
Addressing PM Modi in Alipurduar said the youth and poor families suffer the worst consequences of corruption. He alleged that the education system of West Bengal is being ruined.
'We saw how corruption ruins everything in the teacher recruitment scam. The TMC government in their tenure destroyed the future and families of thousands of teachers and left their children helpless. The whole education system of West Bengal is being ruined. The absence of teachers has put the future of lakhs of students at risk. The TMC leaders have committed such a huge sin. The limit is that even today these people are not ready to accept their mistake. Instead, they blame the courts,' he said.
'The youth, poor, and middle-class (of West Bengal) are bearing the brunt of corruption. We've seen how corruption leads to destruction, especially in the West Bengal teacher recruitment scam. The TMC government has ruined the future of thousands of teachers and their families. This is not just the problem of few thousand teachers, but the entire education system is deteriorating. Even now, they refuse to admit their mistakes and are instead blaming courts,' he added.
Bengal is slated to face assembly polls next year. (ANI)
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
Sikh groups plan protests during PM Modi's G7 visit to Canada
LONDON: Sikh groups tied to the Khalistan movement are preparing a wave of protests against PM Narendra Modi during his visit to Canada for the G7 summit at Kananaskis in Alberta from June 15 to 17. Sikhs for Justice (SFJ), a banned outfit leading an unofficial global Khalistan referendum, released a video vowing to 'ambush Modi politics from landing to take-off'. SFJ's general counsel Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, designated a terrorist by India, accused Modi of exporting 'transnational terrorism from Pakistan to Canada'. 'I want to thank Mark Carney — more of a businessman than a Canadian PM — for giving pro-Khalistan Sikhs a historic opportunity to ambush Modi's politics right in front of G7 nations,' Pannun said in the video. SFJ claimed the protests aim to force G7 nations to hold Modi accountable for the assassination of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Canadian citizen and Khalistan advocate killed last June, as well as an alleged 'murder-for-hire' plot targeting referendum organisers. Pannun also accused India of unleashing Operation Sindoor, which he described using Pakistani terminology as a 'terror attack on Pakistan targeting masjids'. India conducted precision airstrikes under Operation Sindoor on sites tied to Pakistan-backed terrorism, a fortnight after the April 22 terrorist attack in J&K's Pahalgam that claimed 26 lives — all men, mostly tourists. Sikh Federation Canada also condemned Modi's invitation, urging Ottawa to rescind it unless New Delhi cooperates with criminal probes linked to Nijjar's killing and other alleged transnational plots. The group demanded targeted sanctions on Indian brass, including Union home minister Amit Shah. It further called on Canada to 'publicly reaffirm that it will demand accountability from India for documented interference, violence, and assassination plots in Canada'. Canadian govt has yet to respond to the protest calls or the demand to revoke Modi's G7 invitation.


Indian Express
2 hours ago
- Indian Express
Bengal: ‘How can PM take credit for Operation Sindoor' — Hakim's remarks spark row, BJP says ‘insult'
KOLKATA MAYOR and State Urban Development and Municipal Affairs minister Firhad Hakim sparked a controversy on Saturday after his remarks targeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi in connection with Operation Sindoor. The BJP reacted sharply, alleging that the TMC leader 'insulted' the PM and tried to 'downplay' Operation Sindoor. The TMC did not immediately respond to Hakim's remarks. While speaking to mediapersons, Hakim claimed, 'The Indian armed forces gave a befitting answer to Pakistan. How can the PM claim that he has done anything big? How can he take credit for Operation Sindoor?' In a post on X later on Saturday, the BJP wrote, 'Firhad Hakim — Mamata's loudest mouthpiece and the same man who once called parts of Kolkata 'mini Pakistan' — has now crossed every line. He downplayed Operation Sindoor, insulted PM Modi…this isn't political opposition — this is verbal treason. And Mamata Banerjee? Silent…' The BJP's state president Sukanta Majumdar said, 'Basically, Hakim has never taken a stance against Pakistan. During the erstwhile UPA government's tenure, no such steps were taken against Pakistan. That is why Hakim and some others are now finding it tough to accept that it was done.' Attaching a video of Hakim's purported remarks, BJP IT cell chief Amit Malviya accused the senior TMC leader of making a 'disgraceful attack' on the PM. Atri Mitra is a Special Correspondent of The Indian Express with more than 20 years of experience in reporting from West Bengal, Bihar and the North-East. He has been covering administration and political news for more than ten years and has a keen interest in political development in West Bengal. Atri holds a Master degree in Economics from Rabindrabharati University and Bachelor's degree from Calcutta University. He is also an alumnus of St. Xavier's, Kolkata and Ramakrishna Mission Asrama, Narendrapur. He started his career with leading vernacular daily the Anandabazar Patrika, and worked there for more than fifteen years. He worked as Bihar correspondent for more than three years for Anandabazar Patrika. He covered the 2009 Lok Sabha election and 2010 assembly elections. He also worked with News18-Bangla and covered the Bihar Lok Sabha election in 2019. ... Read More


The Hindu
2 hours ago
- The Hindu
A General for all seasons
The comments made by Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) Gen. Anil Chauhan, in an interview with an international media outlet, on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore last month, triggered a flurry of sharp reactions from various quarters in India. Responding to the queries about the losses on the Indian side during Operation Sindoor, Gen. Chauhan confirmed what the Director General of Air Operations, Air Marshal A.K. Bharti, had alluded to at a joint briefing on May 11. 'We are in a combat scenario, losses are a part of combat. The question you must ask us we achieved our objective of decimating the terrorist camps? And the answer is a thumping yes!,' Air Marshal Bharti had said, not disclosing the exact details of the losses. Gen. Chauhan echoed the same in Singapore. 'What I can say is that on May 7, in the initial stages, there were losses, but the numbers — that's not important. What was important is why did these losses occur. So, we rectified that and then went back on 7th, 8th and 10th,' he said. During the military operation, which saw a full-spectrum and multi-domain kinetic action by the tri-services against a 'nuclear-armed' adversary, in close coordination with the intelligence agencies and para-military forces, the CDS played a critical role. A new post It was from the ramparts of Red Fort, during his Independence Day speech on August 15, 2019, that Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the creation of the post of CDS. As enumerated later by the Union Cabinet, CDS was also to head the Department of Military Affairs to deal with areas such as the armed forces, integrated headquarters of the Defence Ministry, jointness in procurement, training, and staffing for the services, restructuring of military commands for optimal utilisation of resources through establishment of joint theatre commands; and promoting use of indigenous defence equipment. CDS, who is also the permanent Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee, acts as the Principal Military Adviser to the Defence Minister on all tri-service matters. While the post is above the three Service Chiefs, it does not exercise any military command. Also read: Soldier Number One: on creation of CDS post Gen. Chauhan assumed charge as the country's second CDS on September 30, 2022, nine months after Gen. Bipin Rawat died in a chopper crash in December 2021. For the first time since independence, a three-star Lieutenant General-rank officer became a four-star General after retirement. During a career spanning over 40 years, Gen. Chauhan has held several key posts and possesses extensive experience in counter-insurgency operations in Jammu & Kashmir and the Northeast. 'Illustrious service' Born on May 18, 1961, he was commissioned into the 11 Gorkha Rifles of the Army in 1981. He is an alumnus of the National Defence Academy, Khadakwasla, and Indian Military Academy, Dehradun. As a Major General, he led an Infantry Division in the Baramulla sector in the Northern Command and later commanded a corps in the Northeast. He was the General Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Eastern Command from September 2019, and held the charge until his retirement from the service in May 2021. He then served as a Military Adviser to the National Security Council Secretariat from October 2021 to September 2022. Besides the command positions, he had also served as the Director General of Military Operations. 'For his distinguished and illustrious service in the Army, Lt. Gen. Anil Chauhan (Retired) was awarded the Param Vishisht Seva Medal, Uttam Yudh Seva Medal, Ati Vishisht Seva Medal, Sena Medal, and Vishisht Seva Medal,' as per a government note. Over the years, especially after the abrogation of Article 370 on August 5, 2019, the developmental initiatives undertaken by the government in all sectors started to show results in Jammu & Kashmir. Just when peace and prosperity seemed to be returning in the region, terrorists struck in Pahalgam on April 22. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who promised an unprecedented response, held meetings with top executive functionaries, including the Chief of Defence Staff. The armed forces and intelligence agencies were granted 'complete operational freedom' to determine the mode, targets, and the timing of India's response, according to the government. Several rounds of brainstorming resulted in the conception of Operation Sindoor. In the intervening night of May 6 and 7, nine terror bases located deep inside Pakistan and the Pakistan-occupied Jammu & Kashmir were struck. Sharing details of the operation, the government said the Air Force bypassed and jammed Pakistan's Chinese-supplied air defence systems, completing the mission in 23 minutes using Rafale jets, SCALP missiles, and HAMMER bombs. 'On May 9-10, India became the first country to strike 11 airbases of a nuclear-armed nation in a single operation, destroying 20% of Pakistan's air force assets. High casualties were inflicted and key air platforms destroyed,' said the government. Losses in the air The Pakistani side claimed to have downed six Indian jets. Clearing the air, Gen. Chauhan on May 31 dismissed the claims as baseless. He, nevertheless, confirmed that there were indeed 'losses in the air'. In his public addresses, Gen. Chauhan has described Operation Sindoor as a decisive move to draw the limits of tolerance and make it clear to Pakistan that it cannot hold India hostage to terror, and that India cannot 'live in the shadow of terror or nuclear blackmail'. Given that Pakistan mostly relied on Chinese sources, while India had a wide range of indigenously developed systems to bank on, Gen. Chauhan noted that it was a manifestation of India's push for self-reliance. He underscored the institutional reforms undertaken to ensure an integrated approach with more flexible structures, emphasising the requirement for dedicated organisations for drones, electronic warfare, and unmanned aerial platforms. In use were battle-proven Air Defence systems like the Pechora, OSA-AK and LLAD guns; Akash, a short range surface-to-air missile system; and loitering munitions (suicide drones). The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) too contributed with at least 10 satellites working round-the-clock monitoring the entire northern region. 'Around 1 a.m. on May 10, Pakistan wanted India to get on its knees in 48 hours. However, India's defence compelled them to come to a truce,' Gen. Chauhan said at an event on 'Future Wars and Warfare' at Savitribai Phule Pune University on June 3. 'Their 48-hour plan was summed up in eight hours and followed by a phone call for a ceasefire.'