Kolkata: The West Bengal unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has commenced the mass distribution of an open letter from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, penned in Bengali and Hindi, among voters as part of its campaigning ahead of the high-stakes Assembly elections scheduled for later this year.
In the letter, the Prime Minister accuses the Mamata Banerjee-led government and the ruling Trinamool Congress of attempting to deprive people of benefits from centrally sponsored schemes. He also claims that, despite obstacles from the state administration, many residents have still gained from these programmes.
“Just a few months, the electoral fate of West Bengal will be decided. A structured decision on your part will decide the fate of the future generation in the state. The people of West Bengal are victims of deprivation. My heart is equally pained by that. Hence, from the core of my heart, I want to make a promise today. The promise is to rebuild a developed and prosperous West Bengal,” the letter states in its opening passage.
In subsequent paragraphs, the Prime Minister lists welfare and development schemes introduced since 2014 by the National Democratic Alliance government led by him, asserting that these initiatives have benefited people across sectors in the state despite what he describes as non-cooperation from the state government.
“In the post-Independence era, West Bengal was the heart of India’s economy. But today my heart bleeds because of the sick and worn-out condition of the state’s economy. West Bengal had continued to suffer for the last six decades because of the continuous misrule and encouragement of appeasement politics. On the one hand, the educated youths are forced to get settled elsewhere because of the lack of employment opportunities. On the other hand, the women of the state are in constant fear over the lack of safety against loss of dignity,” Modi wrote.
He also invokes the legacy of figures such as Swami Vivekananda, Sri Aurobindo, Rabindranath Tagore and Subhas Chandra Bose, stating that the state which once produced such icons is now facing challenges including alleged illegal infiltration, concerns over women’s safety, and economic decline.
“But how long will you tolerate such things? A change is inevitable now. The livelihood of the people in other states has improved manifold now. Several people in those states have been elevated above the poverty level. The people of West Bengal deserve the same development. So let us get united to rebuild a developed West Bengal,” the PM says in the letter.
(IANS)
