Didi asking Muslims to back her reflects minority votes slipping away: PM Modi

Kolkata, Apr 06: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday slammed Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee for seeking en bloc voting by Muslims for the TMC and said had his party made a similar appeal to Hindus, it would have been criticised and censured.

Asserting that Banerjee has problems with people sporting a Tilak and wearing saffron, Modi said the TMC supremo's appeal to the Muslims reflects that her ''minority votes are slipping out of her hands.'' Claiming a BJP wave was blowing across West Bengal and his party would form the next government, Modi said Banerjee's angry reactions indicates that she has lost the polls.

''Didi recently asked all Muslims to vote en bloc for her. It shows that the Muslim vote bank is slipping out of her hands. Had we said the same thing that all Hindus should unite, everybody would have criticised us.The EC would have sent us notices. We would have been censored,'' he said while addressing an election rally here.

Taking a dig at Banerjee's comment, rhetorically questioning whether BJP leaders predicting the party's victory were gods or superhumans, Modi said no one needs be superhuman to predict BJP's victory as the wave in favour of the saffron camp speaks for itself.

''Didi's exit is imminent. That is clear after the first two phases of polling,'' he said.

Modi also claimed Banerjee had hurt Bengalis' self- esteem by alleging people come to his rallies for money.

Accusing the TMC dispensation of indulging in rampant corruption, Modi said: ''Didi has started a new tax in Bengal - 'Bhaipo Service Tax'!''.

''For 10 years, your goons continued to loot Bengal, and you were a mute spectator. For 10 years, injustice with North Bengal continued, but you chose to be a mute spectator,'' he alleged.

Modi said, sensing defeat, Banerjee has turned jittery and was criticising everybody and everything, from EC to EVMs.

Referring to some TMC leaders' claim that Banerjee might contest elections from his Lok Sabha seat Varanasi in 2024, Modi mocked the TMC boss, saying this proves that Didi has accepted her defeat and is looking for another seat.

''Didi is now looking for a place for herself outside Bengal,'' Modi said, who had won the Lok Sabha election twice from Varanasi in 2014 and 2019.