New Delhi [India], April 24 : Union Minister Kiren Rijiju on Friday took a jibe at Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi after the latter accused Trinamool Congress Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee of "polarising" West Bengal, allowing the BJP to make "inroads" into the state.
Kiren Rijiju highlighted the contradictions in Rahul Gandhi's statement in which Lok Sabha LoP predicted Congress would win, but criticised TMC for allowing BJP to gain ground in the state.
"Bewildering.... on the one hand, Rahul Gandhi Ji is saying only Congress can defeat BJP in West Bengal and on the other hand he's saying, due to TMC's polarising politics, BJP will win West Bengal election!" he said.
Yesterday, Rahul Gandhi, appealing to people to vote for Congress, said, "If Mamata ji had run a clean govt, and had she not polarised West Bengal, there would have been no way for BJP to make inroads into Bengal."
"Congress Party fight against the BJP and can defeat them," he added.
Earlier, Union Home Minister Amit Shah had predicted a massive victory for the Bharatiya Janata Party in the West Bengal Assembly elections, citing that an internal assessment had revealed that the party would secure 110 seats out of the 152 seats that went for polling in the first phase.
Addressing a press conference, Amit Shah said that a record voter turnout of over 90 per cent reflects that people have opted for "development" under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, waving goodbye to West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee.
"The BJP's Bengal team has conducted its assessment. Based on this, I can say that out of 152 seats, the BJP is likely to win more than 110. Taking the second phase into account as well, the BJP is set to form the government in Bengal," Amit Shah added.
The polling for Phase I of the Assembly elections concluded at 6 pm on Thursday, with West Bengal recording a significantly higher voter turnout of 91.83 per cent, according to the Election Commission of India.
The high turnout figures underline an active electoral exercise as polling drew to a close amid tight security arrangements across constituencies.
The polling for the second phase will be held on April 29, with counting of votes scheduled for May 4.
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