'How dare you threaten Assam?' Himanta Biswa Sarma slams Mamata Banerjee on her 'burn' remark
Guwahati/Kolkata/IBNS: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma Wednesday lambasted his Bengal counterpart Mamata Banerjee after she mentioned the neighbouring state as she compared the protests in Kolkata to the Bangladesh crisis.
Responding to Mamata Banerjee's remarks that "if Bengal burns, then Assam and Delhi too shall burn", Himanta Sarma said the Trinamool Congress chief was trying to set India on fire with her "politics of failure".
"Didi (Mamata Banerjee), how dare you threaten Assam? Don't show us your bloodshot eyes. Don't try to set India on fire with your politics of failure. It does not suit you to speak divisive language," the Assam Chief Minister tweeted.
दीदी, आपकी हिम्मत कैसे हुई असम को धमकाने की? हमें लाल आंखें मत दिखाइए। आपकी असफलता की राजनीति से भारत को जलाने की कोशिश भी मत कीजिए। आपको विभाजनकारी भाषा बोलना शोभा नहीं देता।
— Himanta Biswa Sarma (@himantabiswa) August 28, 2024
দিদি, আপনার এতো সাহস কীভাবে হলো যে আপনি অসমকে ধমকি দিচ্ছেন? আমাদের রক্তচক্ষু দেখাবেন না। আপনার অসফলতার… pic.twitter.com/k194lajS8s
BJP leader from Assam Piyush Hazarika also slammed the Bengal Chief Minister, saying, "She can't bully, threaten us. I seriously condemn her. She can't control law and order in her state and is threatening us. It will not happen in Assam, I am assuring you."
Union Minister and Bengal BJP president Sukanta Majumdar said the remarks sounded like someone having an "anti-national" mindset and not from a leader holding a constitutional position.
Speaking at the foundation day event of the Trinamool Congress's student wing, Mamata Banerjee attacked the BJP over the violence during the Bengal bandh (strike) and the 'Nabanna Abhijan' protest march to the state secretariat.
The Trinamool government is facing severe ire and massive protests over its handling of the rape and murder of a post-graduate trainee doctor at the state-run RG Kar Medical College and Hospital.
"Some people think this (agitation) is similar to the protests in Bangladesh. I love Bangladesh, they speak like us (Bengal). Our culture is also the same. However, Bangladesh is a different country," Banerjee said in reference to the student protests in the neighbouring country over a controversial quota system that led to the fall of the Sheikh Hasina government.
"PM Modi, you are trying to create unrest in Bengal through your people. But remember, if you burn Bengal, Assam, the North-East, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha, and Delhi will also burn," Banerjee said.
The 12-hour bandh called by the BJP on Wednesday culminated in chaos as party workers clashed with TMC supporters and police in several parts of Bengal. A BJP leader, Priyangu Pandey, claimed TMC supporters hurled bombs and fired at his car in Bhatpara.