Trinamool Congress Chief and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee seem to be adamant on not leaving any opportunity to pull down the ruling BJP at the Centre and the policies implemented by the Modi government.
Mamata on Friday dragged the Centre to the Supreme courts on making linking of Aasdhar card mandatory to avail the social welfare benefits and for financial transactions. The case is likely to be heard on Monday. From past six months, the tussle between the Centre and Banerjee government seems to have grown as with Banerjee firm on opposing every policy of the Central government and with the Centre formulating controversial policies that she and her party do not endorse.
Recently she has been giving a clear indication of resisting the centre at every possible move and from the events, it does not look like she will withdraw from her fight any sooner. BJP is soon replacing Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) as the main opposition in Bengal.
Earlier this week Mamata Banerjee at a party meeting of the Trinamool Congress, Mamata had declared that she would not link her phone number with Aadhar come what may. She had said that “I will not link Aadhaar with my phone, if they want to disconnect my phone, let them.” She also accused the BJP government at the centre of intruding in the privacy of the people.
Attacking the Centre she said that “They [the Centre] are interfering in the people’s rights and privacy. The Aadhaar number should not be linked with one’s mobile phone.”
Other than Banerjee other sections of the civil society has also opposed the Centre’s decision to link the Aadhar card to bank accounts and phone numbers, but among all the West Bengal Chief Minister seem to be the most ferocious rival of the Centre. Sections of civil society have already petitioned the court on the government decision to link Aadhaar with mobile numbers, bank accounts and filing of income tax returns.
This protest and criticism raised by Banerjee against the BJP at the centre is likely to win the hearts of the underprivileged families, who are suffering the consequences of the Aadhar card linking orders of the central government.
The recent incident of an 11-year-old dying of starvation in Jharkhand’s Simdega district, because the victims’ family was denied ration as the Aadhar card was not linked, has only added fuel to the already agitated people and made the ground even stronger for the protest of Mamata.
The government, however, denied the allegation of the death due to denial of ration to the family saying that Santoshi Kumari from Karimati village died of malaria and not hunger.