Mamta Banerjee proved every inch a star campaigner and helped inject instant adrenal into Akhilesh Yadav’s election campaign. Addressing a joint press conference today afternoon at the Samajwadi Party office in Lucknow, the West Bengal chief minister and Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader, expressed total solidarity with the party and extended all support in its electoral campaign.
Lambasting BJP for its anti-people’s policies, Mamta said the BJP has pushed the nation to the brink of destruction and that urgent measures were needed to restore it back to its pristine glory envisaged by the great leaders like Mahatma Gandhi, and Ambedkar. She said that the BJP leaders need to first apologize to the nation for all its anti-people policies that they have subjected the countrymen to before they as much as ask for their votes.
“Pehley Maafi maago phir vote maago (First ask for an apology then ask for votes), Mamta thundered as she listed the charges against the BJP which included the plight leading to the death of the migrant workers, NRC mayhem, suffering, and death of 700 plus farmers and above all the communal divide and hatred that the BJP has thrown the country into.
Mamta said that she has chosen to support Akhilesh because he is a strong secular leader and spells the lone hope for Uttar Pradesh. She said he has the interest of the state at heart unlike the BJP leaders who only practice divisive politics.
“UP ki ladayee izzat ki ladaayee hain (The fight in UP is the fight for dignity) said the firebrand leader, speaking in Bengali laced Hindi.
She charged Yogi Adityanath with leaving Uttar Pradesh to its fate and instead he chose to travel to West Bengal to campaign against her in the assembly elections when he was required to manage things in UP during the second wave of the pandemic.
“Yogi ko Mamta ko harana tha, Covid ko nahi” (Yogi wanted to defeat Mamta and not Covid) said Mamta stressing on the mismanagement during the second wave.
She was angry at the way bodies of Covid patients were thrown into the Mother Ganga ruthlessly and said it seemed that the Holy river was set on fire and the government did not care.
Mamta was also highly critical of the government taking false credit for free vaccination drive and said that it was people’s money that was used so it is shameful of Yogi to take credit for giving free vaccination.
Urging each section of society to come forward to help Akhilesh register a historic win she also had a word of advice for the media. She knows about the pressure on their pen from the BJP but they will have to bravely withstand it and not be swayed. Things will change and sanity will return she told them from her experience.
Thanking Akhilesh for giving her a chance to come to the state and for personally thanking the people of UP for their good wishes for her elections and especially the SP for supporting her party in campaigning Mamta said on 3rd March she will be campaigning in Varanasi for the SP. Promising to come again when the party is victorious she said that West Bengal and UP can then work on people-friendly developmental policies together.
Asking for support for the SP candidates in this elections Mamta had a special appeal to the women of the state. She said that women have tremendous potential and if they come together they can make a big difference in these elections and ensure the victory of SP by all means.
On a very optimistic note, she said Akhilesh is not alone, the masses are with him. “Abki baar Akhilesh 300 paar’ (this time Akhilesh will cross 300 mark) said a beaming Mamta, leaving behind a totally mesmerized Akhilesh.
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