Thakurganj, Bangaon: West Bengal will vote in two phases for its 294 Assembly seats on April 23 and 29. The contest is widely seen as a bipolar fight between the ruling All India Trinamool Congress and a resurgent Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
On a drive from Kolkata to North 24 Parganas, near the India–Bangladesh border, voters from diverse backgrounds shared the issues shaping their choices. Among the most prominent was the controversial Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls and the deletion of voter names during the process.
A significant number of names from both the Matua (Hindu) community and Muslim voters were removed during the exercise that happened in 13 states, including West Bengal.
Senior BJP leader Shantanu Thakur, who has been a Member of the Lok Sabha for Bangaon in North 24 Parganas since 2019, is the Union Minister of State for Ports, Shipping and Waterways. Thakur comes from the Matua community, which is similar to Hindu Dalit communities, but, unlike them, is considered a separate religious sect. Centered in North 24 Parganas and Nadia districts, Matias constitute a crucial voting bloc (approx. 3.8 per cent of the state population), influential in 30–45 assembly seats.
Mint caught up with Thakur at his home in Thakur Bari, Thakurganj, on 16 April. Thakurnagar is considered the “Mecca of Matuas’ and falls in Gaighata Assembly constituency, represented by BJP leader Subrata Thakur, elder brother of Shantanu Thakur.
In conversation with this reporter, Shantanu Thakur expressed confidence in the BJP’s prospects in West Bengal, citing widespread dissatisfaction with the TMC government led by Mamata Banerjee. Thakur, the two-time MP, accused the Mamata Banerjee government of corruption, poor implementation of central welfare schemes, and encouraging illegal infiltration. Thakur also defends the voter deletion in SIR overseen by the Election Commission of India, rejecting allegations of targeted disenfranchisement. Edited excerpts:
Q: You have been traveling and campaigning in West Bengal. What’s the feedback on the ground?
A: People of West Bengal have realized that the Mamata Banerjee government has been a corrupt regime. People are fed up with the current dispensation and do not want to see corruption again. That is why people will vote and elect a BJP government in West Bengal this time.
Q: Do you think the BJP can win due to this anti-incumbency against the Mamata Banerjee government?
A: Of course, yes. We have no doubts. The government unleashed a culture of syndicates, halted the Centre’s welfare schemes, and even encouraged cattle smuggling. The TMC government has not been implementing central schemes and depriving people of benefits. I am sure the BJP government will implement all welfare schemes.
As I said, people are done with TMC now and desperately want a change.
‘Bangladeshis, Rohingyas are not Indian citizens’
Q: SIR and voter deletion have become an issue, which TMC has accused the BJP of misusing against it in West Bengal. What does the BJP think of this?
A: We know SIR is implemented by the independent agency, the Election Commission of India. There is absolutely no scope for politicising and misusing it. The exercise aims to clean up the voter list in West Bengal and elsewhere. People who have come from Bangladesh, including Rohingyas, dead and duplicate voters have been removed.
People from Bangladesh and the Rohingya are not Indian citizens. They must leave India and should not be allowed to vote. Dead voters double voters were killed. I think this is much needed.
Q: There is a complaint by certain sections that Muslims are being deliberately disenfranchised, especially after the ‘adjudication’ exercise.
A: This is not true. Muslims have been deleted, and so have those from the Matua (Hindu) community. Let’s be clear, India is for citizens, and only citizens will be on the voter list.
Q: BJP has been talking about infiltrators. How will it deal with them?
A: We have made it clear from the first day. We won’t allow infiltrators into any part of India. The TMC government has not been allowing border fencing. There should be better fencing at the borders. The TMC government doesn’t want to block infiltrators. That is because infiltrators come and vote for her and her party.
Q: Mamata Banerjee accuses the center of withholding state funds. How do you respond?
A: People of West Bengal know that Mamata Banerjee has created problems for all Union government projects in West Bengal. The Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana was renamed. And not implemented properly. That’s why the Center had concerns over the schemes. Let’s wait for the BJP to come to power. Everything that has been problematic will be fixed.
Q: How different will the BJP be for women?
A: Home Minister Amit Shah ji has said women will be in focus. ₹Rs.3000 will be given to women. We will also start free bus rides. Among other things, the BJP will work to uplift women in West Bengal.
People of West Bengal have realized that the Mamata Banerjee government has been a corrupt regime.
Q: You represent Matua Community. But your aunt and her daughter are with TMC? Who will Matuas choose when it comes to voting?
A: The Matua community had been talking about only one demand: citizenship. The BJP government implemented the Citizenship Amendment Act and gave them citizenship. They will support the BJP, I am sure.
