Kolkata, 20 Dec

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday mounted a sharp attack on the Trinamool Congress (TMC), describing the prevailing situation in West Bengal as “maha jungle raj” and alleging that corruption, nepotism and appeasement politics have stalled the state’s development.

Addressing a rally at Taherpur in Nadia district through video conferencing after dense fog prevented his helicopter from landing, Modi urged voters to give the BJP a chance in the 2026 assembly elections to form a “double engine government” in the state.

“Let the TMC oppose me and BJP as much as it wants, but the ruling party cannot hold people to ransom, make them suffer and stop Bengal’s progress,” Modi said while addressing the Parivartan Sankalpa Sabha, the fourth such rally held by the BJP in Bengal this year.

The Prime Minister asserted, “We will end TMC’s maha jungle raj in Bengal where corruption, nepotism and appeasement politics are ruling the roost.”

Alleging a culture of “cut money and commission” in the state, Modi claimed that development had been stalled despite there being “no dearth of goodwill, schemes and money” for Bengal.

“I want to exert my full force in bringing about development in Bengal. Give the BJP a chance and bring double-engine government here,” he said, sounding the poll bugle for next year’s elections.

Referring to the NDA’s recent electoral success in Bihar, Modi said the outcome would have a positive impact on the BJP’s prospects in Bengal. “The election results in Bihar have opened up the doors for BJP's victory in Bengal because everyone knows that the Ganga flows into Bengal from Bihar,” he remarked.

Claiming growing public discontent against the ruling party, Modi said, “The lanes and alleys of the state are resonating with cries of the slogan ‘Banchte chai, BJP tai’ (Need BJP to live).”

Targeting the TMC over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, the Prime Minister alleged that “infiltrators enjoy TMC support and patronage in Bengal” and accused the party of opposing the exercise to shield them.

He also compared Bengal’s performance under TMC rule with BJP-ruled Tripura, claiming that “at a time when Tripura, armed with a double-engine government, is striding ahead rapidly, Bengal is falling behind in the development graph under TMC.”