'Delhi Chalo': Mamata Banerjee's TMC Plans Massive Rally In Delhi Against Modi Government, To Bring 'Trainload Of Protesters'

On Saturday (2 October), a large group of protesters from Trinamool Congress (TMC), including all MPs, MLAs, panchayat pradhans, and panchayat members, will embark on a journey to Delhi.

The ruling party in West Bengal is organising a massive two-day protest rally in the capital, just before the state's festive season begins with Durga Puja.

The TMC's protest, dubbed the "fight for justice", aims to confront the Narendra Modi-led government over the alleged deprivation of the state's rightful share of dues.

To facilitate the protest, the TMC leadership has reserved an entire train to transport the protesters to Delhi for their dharna, which they have named "Delhi Chalo".

According to a party official, the TMC has not sought support from any of its partners in the opposition bloc for this programme.

Earlier, the TMC had planned a massive protest in Delhi, intending to surround Krishi Bhavan with tens of thousands of party leaders and workers.

However, due to lack of necessary permissions from the police, the party decided to limit the participation to only MPs, MLAs, district and panchayat samiti presidents, and beneficiaries.

The idea for the Delhi campaign was initially proposed by TMC's second-in-command and national general secretary, Abhishek Banerjee.

Mamata Banerjee has been repeatedly stating that the Centre owes the state a significant amount, approximately Rs 1.15 lakh crore, under various central project headings such as MGNREGA and Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY).

The Centre ceased the disbursement of MGNREGA funds to West Bengal in November 2021, citing misuse of funds. Additionally, earlier this year, the Centre halted the allocation of PMAY funds due to discrepancies and irregularities discovered during spot inspections.

The West Bengal government claims that the Centre owes them approximately Rs 7,000 crore under MGNREGA, with Rs 2,900 crore being the wages due to labourers.

Party sources reveal that the protest will commence in Delhi on 2 October, Mahatma Gandhi's birth anniversary.

While the exact location is yet to be finalised, it is expected to begin at Raj Ghat and continue to Jantar Mantar the following day.

Although Abhishek Banerjee may not be able to lead the protest on 3 October due to his summons by the Enforcement Directorate (ED).

Due to a leg injury sustained during her official tour of Spain, Mamata Banerjee is also unlikely to participate in the protest.

According to Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader Sujan Chakraborty, the TMC is already on the defensive. He argues that a corrupt party cannot mobilise 1 million people to go to Delhi.

Challenging the TMC's claim, he points out that they are now saying that only leaders, MLAs, MPs, and panchayat pradhans will participate.

Chakraborty believes that this essentially means they will enjoy a two-day trip to Delhi at the government's expense, returning empty-handed.

BJP leader Samik Bhattacharya accuses the TMC of trying to appropriate Netaji's "Delhi Chalo" call.

Bhattacharya clarifies that the Central government never stated that it would withhold funds; it simply demanded transparency.