West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday stepped up her attack on Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president Amit Shah asking if he were a god that no one can protest against him. Condemning alleged attacks on students of the Vidyasagar College and the University of Calcutta after a scuffle broke out between Trinamool Congress and BJP workers during Shah's roadshow in Kolkata, Banerjee said she has never seen such political violence in Kolkata.
Over 100 persons have been arrested for being involved in the clashes. A college named after Iswarchandra Vidyasagar, a key figure in the Bengal renaissance, was ransacked and a bust of the 19th-century social reformer shattered allegedly by BJP workers during the clashes.
"What does Amit Shah think of himself? Is he above everything? Is he God that no one can protest against him?" Mamata Banerjee told reporters after visiting the Vidyasagar College in north Kolkata, as quoted by news agency PTI.
"They are so uncultured that they have broken the bust of Vidyasagar. They are all outsiders. They BJP had brought them to be used on the day of polls," the chief minister added.
After a group of people shouted slogans against the BJP president outside the Calcutta University campus and showed him black flags during the roadshow, clashes broke out. Banerjee also visited the university campus.
"Does he (Shah) know the heritage of the Calcutta University? Is he aware of the famous personalities who had studied here? He should be ashamed of this attack," she said adding that there will be a protest rally on Wednesday.
The TMC leader also criticised the Election Commission for allegedly not taking enough action against the BJP for spending a huge amount of unaccounted money in the polls.
"While coming through Bidhan Sarani (a north Kolkata road), I saw such huge cutouts (of Shah and Prime Minister Narendra Modi). They are spending so much money. Why is the EC not taking action against them?" Banerjee said.
Kolkata Police Commissioner Rajesh Kumar, who too was present with the chief minister at the Vidyasagar College, said no one involved in the incident would be spared.
(With inputs from agencies)
