New Delhi: As voting got underway in the first phase of the West Bengal Assembly polls on Thursday, the BJP took a dig at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi over his remarks targeting West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, claiming that he is an “expert” at predicting electoral defeats.
In a video posted on X, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spokesperson Pradeep Bhandari said, “Rahul Gandhi is an expert at making election predictions, and he is always accurate when it comes to predicting defeats. That is why, under his leadership, the Congress party has lost more than 90 elections.”
Bhandari asserted that Gandhi’s remarks reflect a growing perception, even among opposition parties, that Banerjee has fostered communalism and lawlessness, and that a political change is likely in West Bengal.
“Rahul Gandhi says that Mamataji is communal and that Mamata Banerjee has led the state towards communalism and lawlessness. According to Rahul Gandhi, Mamata Banerjee’s exit from power is certain,” the BJP leader said.
“Rahul Gandhi’s attack on Mamata Banerjee makes it clear that even opposition allies are now beginning to believe that Bengal needs a change and that a BJP government is required,” he added.
Bhandari’s remarks came in response to a statement made by Gandhi on X on Wednesday.
In a video posted on X, Gandhi said had Banerjee run a “clean government” and not polarised West Bengal, the BJP would not have found political space in the state.
Addressing voters ahead of the first phase of the West Bengal Assembly election, Gandhi urged people to support the Congress and form its government in the state.
“If Mamataji had run a clean government and not polarised Bengal, the BJP would not have gotten an opening,” the leader of opposition in the Lok Sabha said.
He also attacked the BJP, saying the saffron party knows that only the Congress can stop it.
Gandhi accused the BJP of “stealing elections” in states, such as Haryana, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra.
“This election is a fight of ideologies. The BJP’s ideology and the Congress’s ideology are in a battle across the country,” he said.
“The BJP knows that the Congress can stop it. Support the Congress and form a Congress government in Bengal,” he added.
Gandhi further alleged that the BJP is working against West Bengal’s culture, history and language, and criticised its pitch for “one nation, one language, one religion”.
Voting in 152 of the 294 constituencies was held in the first phase of the West Bengal Assembly election on Thursday.
The second phase of polling will be held on April 29, while the counting of votes will be taken up on May 4.
