Updated: November 6, 2020 10:58:47 am
Amit Shah had lunch at Geeta Mahali’s home in Naxalbari in 2017. A few weeks later, she and her husband joined TMC. Archive
To overtake the BJP, the TMC-led government on Thursday appointed a tribal woman, with whom then-BJP President Amit Shah had lunch at his home in Siliguri in 2017, as a house guard. This happened hours before Shah had lunch at another tribe’s house in Bankura.
The woman, Geeta Mahali, said: “I am happy. In recent years, TMC has built my house and given me a gas bottle. And today they offered me a job. I am satisfied, this job will help me run my family smoothly. “After Shah’s visit to her home, she and her husband, Raju Mahali, had joined TMC in the presence of the Minister of Tourism, Goutam Deb.
In the run-up to the 2021 Assembly elections, the BJP and TMC are competing to impress voters from the tribal and Matua communities.
Led by TMC district chairman Ranjan Sarkar, a party delegation delivered the offer letter to Mahali at the Naxalbari police station. Sarkar criticized the BJP for giving “false promises” to the tribes.
“The BJP had given false guarantees (to Mahali’s family) after lunch, and they never came back to help them. It is the TMC that was with them. Even during the confinement, no one came to see how they managed. Today, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who always takes care of her people, has appointed Geeta Mahali as a home guard to be posted at the Naxalbari Police Station. It will help them (the family) a lot, ”Sarkar said.
Local TMC leaders invited Mahali’s family and gave her the documents related to her work.
The BJP, on the other hand, questioned the timing of the job offer.
“Clearly, the intention is not community development. Three years have passed since our minister had lunch at Geeta Mahali’s home. I would like to ask you why you were offered a job when Amit Shah is back in Bengal. They are doing selective politics; otherwise, why has the TMC attached such importance to Geeta Mahali? It is sad that if the TMC offers jobs, then our ministers will have lunch at everyone’s home so that more people can get jobs … I have heard that the government checks given to the Puja organizers bounced. I hope the job letter doesn’t bounce back, ”BJP District President Praveen Agarwal told The Indian Express. He attacked the TMC government for allegedly diverting funds to help Amphan.
In April 2017, Shah began his three-day visit to West Bengal with lunch at the Mahalis in Naxalbari. “I have addressed many demonstrations across the country, but nothing is more satisfying than today’s gathering in this small town in Bengal,” Shah had said.
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