"Can TMC form govt at Centre with just 15 seats?" PM Modi at Krishnanagar

"TMC isn't even winning 15 seats in the country. Now tell me, can TMC form the government with just 15 seats?" PM Modi said while speaking at a rally at West Bengal's Krishnanagar on Friday.

The Prime Minister said that it is also difficult for the Congress party to win more than 50 seats in the Lok Sabha polls, this time.

"...No matter how hard it tries, it is very difficult for the Congress to go past half-century, 50 seats. Can they form the government if they do not even win 50 seats?" PM Modi said.

Slamming the Left, which is in alliance with the Congress in West Bengal, the Prime Minister said, "The Left was at its height in Bengal. Today there is no red flag anywhere here. It has completely declined. Can they form the government?"

Exuding confidence in the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) winning the Lok Sabha elections, PM Modi said, "It is clear that if anyone can form a government in this election, then it will be the BJP-NDA government."

Speaking about the Matua community, a religious group that migrated to the state during the Bangladesh Liberation War, PM Modi said that he brought in the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) to give justice to such displaced people.

"When I meet people from the Matua community, I feel pained to listen to their woes. To remove difficulties from the lives of such people and give justice to people like the Matuas, our government gathered the courage to bring in CAA," the Prime Minister said.

PM Modi warned that no matter how much the ruling TMC government in West Bengal opposes CAA, they will not be successful. Taking a dig at the TMC, PM Modi also said that they have an "allergy" when Hindu victims get their rights.

"TMC is strongly opposing it (CAA). People thought TMC would support it. However, for TMC vote bank politics is the priority. Now they are spreading misinformation about CAA among the public. TMC has an allergy when a Hindu victim gets his rights. TMC must know that it cannot stop the implementation of CAA. I assure all beneficiaries of CAA, that they get all benefits of government schemes. This is Modi's guarantee," the Prime Minister said.

Commenting on the alleged rapid decline of industries in West Bengal, the Prime Minister said that the ruling parties in Bengal ruined all the industrial enterprises and indulged in "extortion and riots".

"There was a time when Bengal had so many factories. There was a time when Bengal was much ahead in industrial development. But Congress, Left and then TMC ruined all the industries. The Left used to lock all industries. Who will come to invest where there is tolabazhi (extortion) and riots?" PM Modi said.

"The INDI alliance of TMC-Congress-Left knows only one thing - appeasement, vote bank politics," he added.

The BJP has pitted Amrita Roy who is from Krishnanagar's royal family and is popularly known as the 'Rajmata' against firebrand TMC leader Mahua Moitra. Moitra was recently expelled from the Lok Sabha for her alleged involvement in the "cash-for-query" case.

In the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, Moitra defeated BJP's Kalyan Chaubey with a margin of 63,218 votes. Krishnanagar will be voting on May 13 in the fourth phase of the Lok Sabha elections.

In the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, the TMC won 34 seats in the state, while the BJP had to settle for just 2 seats.

The CPI (M) won 2 seats, while the Congress bagged 4. However, the BJP came up with a much-improved showing in the 2019 polls, winning 18 seats against the TMC's 22. The Congress's tally dropped to just 2 seats, while the Left scored a blank. (ANI)