A senior Trinamool Congress leader has alleged that the BJP at the Centre has a game plan of getting President’s rule imposed in West Bengal ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha election.

In an interview with ET, Rajya Sabha member and Trinamool’s national spokesperson Sukhendu Sekhar Roy claimed that to achieve this objective, the BJP has designed a four-pronged strategy–of separating north Bengal from the rest of the state, frequently voicing concern over law and order in the state, using CBI and other agencies, and using the Governor as the “agent of the Centre and BJP party”.

“Union home minister chose North Bengal for his rally during his recent visit. The BJP-ruled Centre is trying to divide the country from within and cut off North Bengal from the rest of the state as they know that without doing so, they cannot win… Otherwise how come the party MLAs raise the issue of separate North Bengal in the presence of the Union home minister from the podium?” Roy said.

The second design, according to him, is to continuously raise questions and concern about the law and order situation in Bengal. “The recent examples being BJP youth wing leader Arjun Chowrashia’s death, where the BJP plunged into action in presence of Amit Shah, and the home minister reaching the spot and demanding a CBI probe; the issue of post-poll violence raised repeatedly and BJP filing PILs in Rampurhat violence in Bogtui villages, Hanshkhali gangrape and every other incident,” Roy said. “Despite the fact that in all these incidents, Bengal government led by Mamata Banerjee has taken prompt action immediately after the incidents.”

The third strategy of the “evil game plan”, according to Roy, is using the agencies against Bengal leaders and ministers, right from the period of Trinamool Congress’ landslide victory in the Assembly polls in May 2021. “After the May 2 results, several senior Trinamool ministers were arrested in connection with the Narada case, whereas BJP Leader of Opposition (LoP) Suvendu Adhikari, who was seen taking bribes on camera, was not even summoned by the CBI,” Roy told ET. The fourth plan, according to him, is to use the Governor’s office in Bengal. “The Governor of Bengal is tweeting, holding press conferences against the state government, giving interviews to local and national media, summoning the chief secretary every now and then. No Governor in the past or present across the country has even done this. He is acting as the agent of the ruling party at the Centre and intervening in state’s work,” Roy said. There is a clear attempt by the BJP-ruled Central government to “capture Bengal” and impose President’s rule in the state.

“There is a clear game plan for the imposition of President’s rule, six months ahead of the Lok Sabha polls and takeover of all executive power by the Governor, so that Lok Sabha polls can be manipulated,” Roy alleged.