PM praises Citizenship Bill during BJP's poll campaign

Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the rally in West Bengal on Saturday. Pic/PTI

From a packed ground in West Bengal's Thakurnagar, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday kickstarted his campaign in the state for the Lok Sabha elections, due by May. In a short address lasting only 14 minutes, he seemed to cut short his speech because of a stampede in the crowd, wrapping up after a brief mention of the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill and urging the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress government to support it in Rajya Sabha.

"After Independence, many people stayed where they were. But after being tortured, they left and came back to India. They had to as Hindus, Sikhs, Parsis and Christians have nowhere else to go but India. And that's why we are bringing the citizenship law. I urge the Trinamool to support it in parliament. My brothers and sisters here need it," the PM said.

Thakurnagar as the first venue for PM Modi's rally holds political significance. It is the hub of the sizeable Matua community, which originally is from erstwhile East Pakistan and began migrating to West Bengal in the beginning of the 1950s mostly due to religious persecution. The rally venue was near the house of Matua matriarch Binapani Debi.

The PM, in his next address in Durgapur, a part of the BJP's 'Ganatantra Bachao' programme, slammed Mamata Banerjee's government on development. The rallies come just weeks after Banerjee organised a mega Opposition rally in the state, which was attended by leaders of 24 parties from across the country calling for the BJP-headed government at the Centre to be ousted.

Mamata Banerjee

'Waiting for my cook to be questioned'
Alleging that PM Modi was "compelling" his officers to send notices for "humiliating opposition political leaders", Banerjee said she had no problem if the authorities choose to arrest her. Banerjee said she was waiting for the day when even the person who cooks her food would be questioned by the government. Her outburst came a day after her close aide was quizzed by the CBI.

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