CM: Beware of Hyd netas who are BJP ‘allies, agents’

Sagardighi (Murshidabad): Chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday alleged that leaders visiting West Bengal from Hyderabad with money bags and claiming to be sympathisers of Muslims are the “biggest allies and agents” of BJP.
She also warned the minority population of Murshidabad against getting influenced by extremist groups.
“Don’t trust them.They will hold meetings with you and promise that they will take up your cause. But how will they fight when they are known BJP agents?” Banerjee said without naming All India Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul-Muslimeen (AIMIM), which has become one of her targets other than BJP after Asaduddin Owaisi’s party sprung a surprise by winning the Kishanganj assembly bypoll in Bihar, bordering north Bengal.
Continuing her tirade against AIMIM, the CM said: “I don’t believe in doing politics over religion. But a few people are coming from Hyderabad and trying to vitiate the atmosphere.”
“Police have to be more active and vigilant about who are visiting the district (Murshidabad) and holding indoor and outdoor meetings. Keep a tab on some schools and madrasas,” she added.
Reacting to Banerjee’s statement, AIMIM state president Zameerul Hasan said the CM had “lost her cool” as his party was gaining ground in the state “among Muslims and Dalits”. “I want to make it very clear that AIMIM will fight the 2021 assembly polls in the state,” he added.
Marking a shift in her rhetoric on religious extremism, Banerjee had at a Cooch Behar event on Monday asked people to refrain from listening to “minority extremists” who have their base in Hyderabad.
The comment drew sharp reactions from AIMIM chief Owaisi, a Lok Sabha MP, who hit back on Tuesday saying Muslims in Bengal were ranked “worst” on development indicators. “She is making these statements because she is frustrated... because she is losing ground... and she has demeaned all the Muslims who had voted for her,” Owaisi had said.