After Amit Shah, Yogi Adityanath denied permission to hold rally in Bengal, alleges BJP

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday hit out at the Mamata Banerjee government in West Bengal, alleging the chief minister has replaced democracy with her "dictatorship" after the state administration denied permission to a rally by its star campaigner and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. Earlier in the day BJP president Amit Shah was denied permission to hold a in Jadhavpur.

Lashing out at the Bengal government, BJP’s national secretary Sunil Deodhar tweeted: “Democracy is a joke in West Bengal - Granted Permission cancelled at last moment for @AmitShah Ji’s rally at Jadhavpur - Once again @myogiadityanath Ji’s rally permission cancelled in South Kolkata. DM & CEO both are working as agent of ruling Trinamool Congress.”

Democracy is a joke in West Bengal

- Granted Permission cancelled at last moment for @AmitShah Ji’s rally at Jadhavpur

- Once again @myogiadityanath Ji’s rally permission cancelled in South Kolkata.

DM & CEO both are working as agent of ruling Trinamool Congress.

— Chowkidar Sunil Deodhar (@Sunil_Deodhar) May 13, 2019

Shah was scheduled to hold a rally Monday but the state administration denied permission for it last night and also withdrew its nod to the landing of Shah's chopper in the constituency, BJP leader and Union minister Prakash Javadekar told reporters.

Meanwhile, the BJP said on Monday the Election Commission has become a "mute spectator" to the Trinamool Congress's alleged undemocratic means to target the saffron party.

BJP media head and Rajya Sabha MP Anil Baluni said his party will hold protests and also move the EC.

Shah's rally was scheduled for Monday in Jadhavpur, which goes to the polls on May 19 in the last phase, but the permission for it was denied at the last minute by the state administration, he said.

Subsequently, the permission for Shah's chopper to land was also withdrawn, Baluni said.

"It is unfortunate that the EC has become a mute spectator to all this and also use of violence by the TMC in the state," he said. He alleged the ruling party in Bengal was using undemocratic means to target the BJP.

Nine seats will go to polls in the last phase of the general election.

This is not the first time when the Amit Shah's proposed event has been denied permission by the West Bengal government. In January, the BJP had alleged that the state government did not allow a helicopter carrying party chief Amit Shah to land, a charge the state government denied.

Earlier on December 6, 2018, Shah was denied permission to hold 'rath yatra' from Coochbehar on grounds that it might cause communal tension.Â

The state government has in the past denied permissions to land chopper of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, senior party leader Shivraj Singh Chouhan and even Congress president Rahul Gandhi.

Meanwhile, the Trinamool Congress and the BJP are involved in a war of word over alleged use of hawala route to transfer money for distribution among the voters.Â

Trinamool alleged that BJP is using the hawala route to transfer money for distribution among the voters and law enforcing agencies are not taking any action in this regard.

The money is being transported under Z plus security and is changing hands through the hawala route among the people, she charged at a poll meeting here in support of TMC's Barasat Lok Sabha seat candidate Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar. The BJP has called Banerjee's charge "baseless".

"This operation is being carried out by BJP during the night when campaigning is over. It is surprising that no enforcing agency is taking any action. We need to keep a watch on this," the Trinamool supremo alleged.

(With PTI inputs)