Kolkata, Feb 13: Trinamool Congress leader Abhishek Banerjee on Thursday slammed the Centre over the joint parliamentary committee report on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, alleging that the BJP was trying to stifle voices of the opposition.
Earlier in the day, the report of the joint committee of Parliament on the Waqf Bill was tabled in the Rajya Sabha.
Opposition MPs led by Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge alleged that dissent notes were deleted from the report, a charge denied by Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju.
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Asked about the JPC report on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, Banerjee said, “This is what they do. You saw how they silence opposition voices. It’s okay, let’s wait and watch – people are noticing.”
On criticism of the West Bengal budget, which was presented on Wednesday in the state assembly, Banerjee said, “Those who call it directionless should first read it. Criticising without understanding has become a trend.”
He also termed them “empty vessels”, and alleged that they had “nothing to offer” for Bengal in the union budget.
“That’s why we said the BJP-led Centre deprived Bengal,” he claimed.
Criticising the Centre’s income tax relief announcements in the union budget, he alleged, “The BJP is talking about tax relief for income up to Rs 12 lakh, but GST is imposed on everything except water. Whatever they give, they take back through GST.”
Commenting on the Delhi election results, Banerjee accused the BJP of obstructing the AAP government to function properly.
“They didn’t allow the Delhi government to function and then campaigned that the AAP dispensation was ineffective. They put the CM and ministers behind bars. How will they function then?” he asked.
Referring to the 2023 ordinance in Delhi, he said, “The AAP couldn’t effectively counter the false narrative”.
“The BJP-led Centre tried to block funds for Bengal but we asked them to furnish a white paper which it didn’t. People saw the BJP’s ill intentions as we have effectively communicated them,” Banerjee alleged.
Highlighting the TMC government’s outreach programmes he said, We reached out to 50 lakh people, making them aware that it is the Centre that has deprived Bengal, not the state government. People are never wrong. You have to accept their mandate, whether you like it or not, he claimed.
Indicating a strong possibility of the TMC contesting alone in the 2026 assembly elections, Banerjee emphasised that the party had “previously performed better when fighting independently”.
However, he kept the doors open for dialogue for any alliance saying, “Let’s wait, we have a lot of time.” (PTI)
