West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Sunday (February 18) alleged that the BJP-led Centre “deactivated” Aadhaar card of people in the state ahead of the upcoming Lok Sabha elections to prevent them from getting benefits of various welfare schemes of the state government through their bank accounts.
Mamata's allegations
Speaking at a public distribution programme in the Birbhum district, Mamata said that her government would continue paying the beneficiaries of the various state-run welfare schemes even if a person does not have an Aadhaar card.
"Be aware, they (BJP-led Centre) are deactivating Aadhaar cards. Several Aadhar cards have been deactivated in many districts of Bengal. They (BJP-led Centre) are delinking Aadhaar cards so that before polls people do not get benefits of Lakshmi Bhandar through banks, free ration," she said.
"But we will continue paying the beneficiaries of the schemes even if they have no Aadhaar card. Not a single beneficiary will be affected," she added.
Mamata on farmers’ protest
Talking about the ongoing protest by the farmers in Haryana, Punjab where they are demanding a law on minimum support price of their produce, Mamata said that the farmers in West Bengal do not face any problems.
"I salute farmers' protest. I condemn the attacks on them," the West Bengal CM said.
(With PTI inputs)
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