Worry about Bengal, says Amit Shah to scribe on his retirement

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday, December 31, thwarted a question on retirement and asked the media to focus on the West Bengal Assembly election instead.

During a press conference in Kolkata, a journalist asked Shah “The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has a rule where leaders who turn 75 years of age must give up active politics and become mentors.”

The journalist then asked if the Union minister who he thinks should retire. In response, Shah said, “I will find out and let you know.” He then said, “Worry about Bengal, why are you bothered about my party.”

Shah’s statement comes ahead of Assembly elections in West Bengal, which are due later this year.

Bengal visit

The Home Minister is on three-day visit to the poll bound state. On December 30, Shah addressed a press conference and said, “If we come to power in West Bengal in 2026, our first task will not only be to prevent illegal infiltration but also to drive away the illegal infiltrators who are staying inside the state currently.”

He also accused the state government and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee of not just refraining from taking action against infiltration but also nurturing it.

“I want to ask Mamata Banerjee whether there is any other state government in the country that resists raising barbed fencing at the international borders with Bangladesh. The problem of illegal infiltration taking place in West Bengal is currently not just the problem of the state; rather, it has become a national problem,” Shah said.

He also launched a scathing attack against the West Bengal government and the ruling Trinamool Congress over the issues of corruption.

“From chit fund scams to school-job scandals, from coal to cattle smuggling, the names of Trinamool Congress leaders and ministers are everywhere. So many ministers in the state have been jailed because of their involvement in corruption,” he said.

Shah alleged that the safety of the women in West Bengal has hit rock bottom during the Trinamool Congress regime. “Be it at RG Kar Medical College & Hospital, South Kolkata Law College or Sandeshkhali, the women of West Bengal are not safe anywhere. Mamata Banerjee owes an explanation to the people of the state on these issues,” the Union Home Minister said.

(With inputs from IANS)