The Communist Party of India (Marxist)-led Left Front in West Bengal is holding a rally at Kolkata’s Brigade Parade Ground on Sunday, 3 February.
Addressing the rally, West Bengal Left Front Chairman Biman Bose said that the slogan is “BJP Hatao, Trinamool Hatao (Remove BJP, remove Trinamool Congress).”
He also referred to West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee as “Mukhonetri” or "chief actress,” alleging that her anti-BJP pitch was “just drama.”
The meet is supposed to be the Left’s show of strength and its aim is to match Banerjee’s ‘United India’ rally that was held at the same venue on 19 January.
Describing Prime Minister Narendra Modi as a chowkidar (watchman), CPI(M) General Secretary at Brigade Parade Ground said, "We have to defeat the Chowkidar Modi in the next elections. We don't need such a chowkidar, in whose presence loot is going on in the country.”
The CPI(M) leader also called termed the interim budget a “jumla” and called for a need for change in policies.
The veteran leader also attacked the ruling Trinamool Congress in the state, stating that the "saffron party and the Mamata Banerjee-led party were two sides of the same coin".
"It is important to defeat the TMC in the state in order to defeat BJP at the Centre," he added.
Banerjee’s rally was a show of Opposition unity with leaders from various anti-BJP parties. Sharad Pawer (NCP), Chandrababu Naidu (TDP), Farooq Abdullah (National Conference), Mallikarjun Kharge (Congress), Arvind Kejriwal (AAP), Akhilesh Yadav (Samajwadi Party), Satish Chandra Misra (BSP), Tejashwi Yadav (RJD), Jignesh Mevani, and Hardik Patel were among the leaders who had shared the stage with the Trinamool Congress chief.
Similarly, the CPI(M) rally is a show of Left unity. Representatives of other Left parties such as Communist Party of India General Secretary Sudhakar Reddy and Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Liberation General Secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya are in attendance at the rally.
A crowd of Left supporters began assembling at the Brigade Parade Ground from Sunday morning. Left cadres are said to have come for the rally from all over Bengal and other states.
The Left’s assertion in Bengal is significant as in the past few years, the BJP has been edging the Left Front out as the main Opposition party in the state. There have also been cases of Left cadres defecting to the BJP.
The saffron party is counting on capturing the entire anti-Trinamool space in Bengal. But if the Left manages to hold some ground, it could be bad news for the BJP.
(With inputs from PTI)
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