Union Home Minister Amit Shah has launched a scathing attack on West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, alleging that "hundreds of BJP workers were killed" in the state after Banerjee assumed office. Addressing BJP workers in Kolkata on Sunday, June 1, 2025, Shah accused Banerjee and her Trinamool Congress (TMC) of turning West Bengal into a land of "infiltration, atrocities on women, crime, bomb blasts, and immorality with Hindus."
Shah asserted, "For years, Bengal was ruled by communists. After that, Mamata Banerjee came by with the slogan 'Maa, Maati, Maanush'. She converted the great land of Bengal into a land of infiltration, atrocities on women, crime, bomb blasts and immorality with Hindus... Hundreds of BJP workers were killed in West Bengal after Mamata Banerjee became the CM." He expressed confidence that the BJP would form the government in 2026, stating, "Didi, listen to me, your time is over now."
The Home Minister challenged Banerjee to contest elections without violence, claiming that her deposit would be seized if she did so. He further accused the TMC chief of appeasement politics, alleging that she has "crossed all limits of appeasement for the votebank." Shah referenced the killing of "our people" in Pahalgam and the "Operation Sindoor," during which Indian forces allegedly entered Pakistan and destroyed terrorist headquarters. He claimed that Banerjee opposed "Operation Sindoor" and has "played with the emotions of crores of women in the country" and that "The sisters and mothers of West Bengal should teach Mamata Banerjee the value of Sindoor in the upcoming elections".
Shah vowed to punish those responsible for the murders of BJP workers once the TMC is removed from power, "I assure that as soon as the TMC is removed from power, those responsible for the murders of our party workers will be punished, even if they are hiding under the ground," he said.
These recent statements echo similar accusations made by Shah in the past. Leading up to the 2021 West Bengal Assembly elections, Shah repeatedly criticized the TMC government for political violence. In March 2021, he questioned whether Banerjee felt the pain of the families of BJP workers allegedly killed in political violence, stating that over 130 party workers had been killed. In April 2021, he alleged that no arrests had been made despite the killings of over 100 BJP workers.
The BJP has consistently alleged that its workers have been targeted by the TMC since Banerjee became Chief Minister. Violence did indeed follow the 2021 West Bengal Legislative Assembly election, which the TMC won for a third consecutive term. The BJP claimed that at least six of its workers were killed during attacks by TMC workers and that many BJP workers and supporters fled their homes fearing assault by TMC members. In June 2021, the then-West Bengal BJP president Dilip Ghosh claimed that 37 party workers were killed after the recent assembly election results.
The TMC has denied these allegations, claiming that the BJP is spreading misinformation and using old pictures of riots from outside Bengal. Mamata Banerjee has appealed for peace and announced compensation for those who died.
Political violence has a long history in West Bengal. While the causes are complex, some analysts attribute the current surge in violence to the BJP's aggressive push to unseat the ruling TMC. The state has witnessed numerous clashes between TMC and BJP workers, with both parties accusing each other of intimidation and assault.
