TMC will win Bengal assembly polls with 250 plus seats: Abhishek Banerjee

Outsiderswill not rule Bengal, Banerjee said.

Trinamool Congress leader AbhishekBanerjee on Saturday asserted the TMC will secure 250 plusseats while the saffron party will find it difficult to crossthe double digit mark.

He was countering the BJP's claim of coming to powerin the state by winning over 200 seats in the polls to the294-member assembly due in April-May.

Addressing a public meeting here in South 24 Parganasdistrict, Banerjee who is the youth wing president of theparty and nephew of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee iteratedthat the saffron party's clamour for a double-enginegovernment in West Bengal (same party rule in the Centre aswell as state) will fall flat before the single engine powerof Mamata Banerjee.

The TMC is going to form the government for the thirdconsecutive term and the party will stay in power for 50years, he said.

''West Bengal will elect Mamata Banerjee as the chiefminister for the third time,'' the Diamond Harbour MP said.

Referring to Dinesh Trivedi's resignation from RajyaSabha as a TMC member on Friday, Banerjee said ''Trivedi wassaying he was feeling suffocated. Let him go and get admittedin BJP's ICU''.

Noting that the only poll plank of the BJP is 'JaiShri Ram' and it has no development agenda, the TMC leaderalleged that the saffron party does not know to give respectto women.

''They say Jai Shri Ram and not Jai Siya Ram.

This is because they don't know to give respect to women'', headded.

'Jai Siya Ram', translates from Hindi to 'glory to Sitaand Lord Ram' while 'Jai Shri Ram' denotes 'hail Lord Ram'.

The TMC youth wing chief also alleged that women aretortured in BJP-ruled states like Gujarat and UP.

''See the way the saffron party showed disrespect toMamata Banerjee at the birth anniversary celebrations ofNetaji Subhas Chandra Bose at Victoria Memorial in the city'',he said.

He claimed that BJP leaders coming from north Indiaare a ''bunch of outsiders'' who are not aware of the culture ofBengal, and spreading fake news to confuse people.

''Let me say our chief minister Mamata Banerjee willstand there like Maa Durga to fight against the BJP which hasweapons like CBI and ED'', he said.

Banerjee claimed that the saffron party is trying toinfluence farmers of the state by promising to provide Rs18,000 in their accounts, if elected to power, but ''Bengalwill never sell its spine to the BJP''.

The BJP has been saying that the saffron party, ifvoted to power in the state, will ensure that each farmer ofthe state gets Rs 18,000 in arrears under the PM-KISAN scheme.

The TMC MP from Diamond Harbour said, West Bengal isthe only state where people are getting free ration andeducation.

''Let me say the BJP should first think of Gujarat, UPand other states. No need to worry about Bengal. Outsiderswill not rule Bengal,'' Banerjee said.