“Not Modi or Shah, EC is BJP’s trump card”: Abhishek Banerjee alleges bias, issues 19-day warning

Amid the high-stakes West Bengal Assembly elections, Trinamool Congress national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee has launched a sharp attack on the Election Commission, alleging that it is acting in favour of the BJP. In a strongly worded post, he claimed that the Commission is functioning as the ruling party’s “real trump card,” operating “from behind the clouds” to influence the electoral battle in Bengal.

Abhishek Banerjee said that contrary to popular belief, leaders like Narendra Modi, Amit Shah, or Yogi Adityanath are not the BJP’s biggest strengths in the state. Instead, he alleged that the Election Commission is playing a decisive role by allegedly acting on instructions from the BJP. He further claimed that the Commission is behaving like a “loyal follower,” raising serious questions about neutrality during the ongoing electoral process.

He also highlighted the large deployment of central forces in the state, claiming that nearly 100 companies have been stationed in Bengal. According to him, these forces could have been deployed in other sensitive regions but are instead being used to monitor Trinamool Congress leaders and their families. He alleged that party workers are being intimidated and warned by officials, including those he described as “officers from Gujarat.”

Issuing a strong warning, Abhishek Banerjee said that central forces and officials currently deployed in Bengal would remain only for a limited period. He asserted that after the election results are declared, such officials would not be present in the state “even for an hour,” calling his statement a “challenge” rather than a threat. The remarks come amid ongoing tensions between the ruling party and the Election Commission over the voter revision process and election management in the state.