Siliguri, Aug 21 (PTI) Asserting that neither the state nor the country will be safe until its frontiers are secured, Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday slammed former West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee over the delay in the India-Bangladesh border fencing, alleging that his “repeated pleas” to her for land to erect the fences fell on deaf ears.
Taking a fresh swipe at the Congress over the rendition of Vande Mataram, Shah said successive governments after Independence had failed to accord the national song its due recognition.
At a separate event, he also slammed Banerjee for allegedly delaying implementation of the new criminal laws in Bengal.
On the second day of his north Bengal tour, Shah targeted the former CM over the border fencing delay while attending a programme at the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) frontier headquarters in the Ranidanga area here, where he laid foundation stones for infrastructure worth around Rs 189 crore and inaugurated several other projects.
“My desperate and repeated pleas to Mamata Banerjee for land to set up border fences by the BSF fell on deaf ears. I had been asking for 1,129 acres of land to strengthen border security since 2014. We received the land parcel only after the BJP government was formed in the state,” Shah said.
He praised Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari for promptly meeting the Centre’s security requirements and said the state government had approved projects even before formal requests were made.
“We needed 560 acres to strengthen the extremely sensitive Siliguri Corridor. But for all these years, the Mamata Banerjee government did not provide it. I would like to thank Adhikari for granting his approval for the land after coming to power. And today, his presence at this event is like the icing on the cake for us,” he added.
Former CMs of Bengal never participated in SSB celebrations despite sending them invitations, he claimed, adding that the “SSB is not a political organisation and the force is beyond such considerations”.
Shah announced the construction of a border security administration headquarters in Siliguri on an 80-acre plot and highlighted the Centre’s efforts to strengthen security in the strategically important Siliguri Corridor, also called the ‘Chicken’s Neck’. He lauded SSB personnel for securing India’s open borders with Nepal and Bhutan while maintaining friendly ties with neighbouring countries.
He said advanced technologies, including drones, anti-drone systems, thermal imaging, AI-based surveillance, smart surveillance grids and real-time intelligence sharing, were being deployed to strengthen border security.
Shah also spoke at length about Vande Mataram.
“The complete version of Vande Mataram was never sung in India until at the Red Fort during the Independence Day celebrations this year, where the song was bestowed with the dignity it deserves. It gives me solace that the nation has finally recognised the song in the 150th year of its creation by Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay,” he said.
“This immortal composition by Bankim Babu not only gave momentum to our freedom movement but also offered us a goal of what an independent India should be like. By penning the song and the novel (Ananda Math), he underscored the need of independent India to tread the path of cultural nationalism,” he added.
Shah called the legislation making the full rendition of Vande Mataram part of official government programmes a “historic decision”.
His remarks came amid a political row between the BJP and the Congress over the rendition of the song, with the Congress Working Committee deciding to sing only its first two stanzas at party programmes.
At a separate programme in Kawakhali, where he inaugurated an exhibition on the three new criminal laws, Shah alleged that the previous Mamata Banerjee government had deliberately delayed their implementation to protect the “syndicate, cut-money and extortion regime”.
“While the entire country had begun implementing the new criminal laws, Banerjee never notified them. She knew that the laws would sound the death knell for her syndicate, cut-money and extortion regime.” The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam replaced the British-era Indian Penal Code, Code of Criminal Procedure and Indian Evidence Act from July 1, 2024. Shah said Adhikari signed the notification file soon after taking charge.
“You will now see how these laws will protect citizens and safeguard property. These laws will ensure that justice can be delivered even up to the Supreme Court within three years,” Shah said.
He said the new laws would speed up justice delivery and allow zero-FIRs to be registered at any police station.
The exhibition, titled ‘Five Pillars: Transformed Justice System’, is open to public and will continue till August 26.
Taking a swipe at previous administrations, Shah said the “cadre raj” of the Left Front had been replaced by “goonda raj” under the TMC and claimed that Bengal was now witnessing the rule of law.
“I repeat my firm stand to unearth every single infiltrator in this state, throw them out, using the detect-delete-deport mechanism,” Shah said, assuring refugees that they had nothing to fear from implementation of the Citizenship Amendment Act.
“The work that had been blocked by the Mamata Banerjee government would now be carried out,” he said. “She tried to stop the implementation of CAA in Bengal, even made fun of it. But now people have removed her government from power.” Shah also held two internal security-related review meetings at a hotel here in the evening.
Addressing the same events, the CM said his government would work closely with the Centre and security agencies to strengthen border security and curb smuggling and other cross-border activities.
“Our government, within such a short time of 100 days, has given 242 km to the BSF to secure the border. The nation is paramount. We must work together to secure our country, stop revenue leakages, end smuggling and keep our borders safe,” he said, adding, “Bengal’s contribution will be the largest in Viksit Bharat 2047”. PTI SMY BSM MNB BDC NSD SMY BDC
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