Kolkata: Janata Unnayan Party (JUP) founder Humayun Kabir on Saturday said he will fight against both ruling Trinamool Congress and BJP in the coming Assembly polls in West Bengal and called upon "every secular, pro-people" party, including Congress, Indian Secular Front and CPI(M) to join hands with JUP, PTI reported.
Addressing a rally at Rezinagar in Murshidabad district, the Bharatpur MLA said he had been wrongly branded as "communal" by the BJP and even the TMC, both of whom are pitting one community against another for their vote bank.
"I am against showing any narrow-mindedness against any religion. Major parties like TMC and BJP have not done anything to improve the condition of Muslims, SCs, STs, tribals, backward castes and other underprivileged communities and only give lip service to them. Only use them as votebanks. The JUP and its alliance partners will fight the election to protect the rights of these underprivileged people," he said.
Accusing the TMC of keeping the administration inactive during communal riots which rocked parts of the district last year, Kabir said, "The administration did nothing when people were getting attacked, when people like Hargovinda Das and Chandan Das were murdered. Why the administration fail to quell the riots, and why could it not ensure that there was no communal clash?
"Such acts of violence are not supported by ordinary people of Murshidabad, and we must act against such violence. My party and members of the Muslim community condemn any such violence." About the recent violence in Beldanga, Kabir said, "The TMC national general secretary unfairly and wrongly blamed me. Why in every incident, the local MLAs and MP of his party fail to respond and are missing from action? It is Humayun Kabir who had been among the first to control the situation and prevent any flare-ups." "Hindu brothers, please note Kabir is not against you. The false narrative built against me by leaders like Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma should be trashed. I had been misquoted and my comments twisted by these parties like BJP," he said.