Asserting she has a firm grasp on the public pulse, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said the Trinamool Congress (TMC) is already in the “driver’s seat” following the high voter turnout in the first phase of polling on Thursday. She claimed that despite large-scale voter deletions, the turnout was high in the first phase of polling, “because people know that this is their battle to save their rights.”Addressing a gathering at the Bowbazar-Chowringhee crossing, the TMC-supremo attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP, accusing them of spreading lies and threatening the state administration, as well as neglecting Bengal’s interests until election season.“If I can understand the pulse of the people, then let me tell you that we are already in the driver’s seat,” she said, adding, “I don’t disrespect a chair or launch personal attacks. However, the person sitting on the chair must also know how to respect the chair. If they disrespect others and spread lies, I will not tolerate it.”“They will try to implement the NRC. They wanted to do delimitation,” CM Banerjee added.Referring to the land subsidence in Bowbazar during Metro work, she said: “This area is the hub of shops that sell gold jewellery. I stood with them when land subsidence happened due to the Metro railway. I compelled the authorities to provide rehabilitation since the incident happened due to lack of proper planning from them.”Taking a dig at Modi, CM Banerjee said: “You said that you will eat jhal-muri after you win. We will treat you with ‘bhelpuri’ (popular street food). That’s easily available in Delhi. Remember, I can eat your dhokla and dosa. But have you ever tasted fish, meat and rice?.”The PM had savoured ‘jhalmuri’ (street snack) during his visit to Jhargram last week. At the Krishnanagar rally on Thursday, he said: “On May 4, the BJP will be victorious in West Bengal, and sweets and jhalmuri (snack made of puffed rice) will be distributed. I have heard that jhalmuri gave them a big shock. Jhalmuri maine khaya par jhal TMC ko laga hai (I had eaten the jhalmuri, but the heat was felt by the Trinamool Congress).”Story continues below this adShe asked why the Prime Minister was speaking about the election on polling day. “A respectable chair must not spread lies. Why do you speak about the election on the day of polling? On the day of counting, you go to a cave and pretend to meditate. This is your habit,” she added.“How can PM Modi say on the day of polling that he is winning the election? Let people decide that. How can BJP be such a dimwitted party? Do you mean that the EVMs are already rigged? How can you say that all the votes being cast are being cast in your favour?” Mamata asked.Chief Minister Banerjee further accused PM Modi of trying to threaten the administration. “He was here in the morning. He came to threaten the administration since they don’t have workers on the ground. Everything is being done by their agencies. The administration is working as per the directives of these agencies,” she claimed.“I have heard from the press that the commission, which conducts the polls, is spreading a fake narrative that there are chances of violence and rigging after 4 pm. Does that mean that you will try to capture the EVMs and try to rig the polls by using the central forces? Everything that you will do will backfire,” the CM further claimed.Story continues below this ad“Why is the fake narrative of violence after 4 pm being fed to the media? Will you use the central forces to rig the polls? Will they capture the EVMs? People of Bengal know how to protect their votes,” she said.Taking another swipe at the PM, she said: “The Laat Sahab has done his calculations from 2005. He should submit his calculator to the BJP and work without bias. He should first resign from the Prime Ministership before saying that he is the candidate in 294 seats. He is not even a voter of Bengal. Why does he lie so much?”“He is saying that he will stay here from 27th to 28th. How can he stay here? He is not a voter. How can an outsider stay like this?,” CM Banerjee said, adding, “Their downfall has begun.”CM Banerjee alleged the BJP would resort to “slow counting”. “They will first show that BJP is winning. Remember, the sun will set on BJP’s electoral fortunes,” she said. “They only spread lies during the polls. Why are they distributing forms now? They could have done it in the budget as we did. In Delhi, they promised to give Rs 2,500 to women. They haven’t given a single penny. In Bihar, they are asking women to return the money they gave them just before the polls,” the CM said.Story continues below this ad“Lakshmir Bhandar will never stop here. Yuva Sathi will continue. We will help our youth get employed. We are establishing six economic corridors. Lots of employment is being generated,” she said.On the Women’s Reservation Bill, she said: “The Women’s Reservation Bill was passed in Parliament with more than 450 votes on September 25, 2023. We also voted for it. Why has that bill not been notified yet? Their plan was to implement delimitation in the guise of the Women’s Reservation Bill. Their plan was to increase the total seat count in the Lok Sabha to around 850. He knows very well that he will not be able to come to power again with 543 seats. For that, he can divide Bengal and also the nation. He should have resigned on that very day when he was defeated in the Lok Sabha.”Mamata Banerjee contrasted her campaign style with the BJP leaders and said, “I walk in the rallies while they don’t even step out of their bullet-proof AC vehicles.” “Yesterday, the rioter said that I have converted Bengal into a slum. So, will only rich people stay? How much has your wealth grown over the years? What about your son? Those who are involved with cricket know who gets all the tenders,” she said.“BJP promised to provide two crore jobs per year. How many jobs have you provided so far? The railway budget has been scrapped. You have sold the railways, SAIL, GAIL and LIC. You have done this for your personal interest and the interest of your party. You have sent the money outside. You are marred with scandals. This is the most corrupt government,” Banerjee said.Story continues below this ad“Through demonetisation, you have taken away whatever people had. Your taxes are making people poor,” she added.She stated that people live peacefully in Bengal whereas Delhi, Manipur, Noida and Bihar are burning.The chief minister alleged that CPI(M) and the BJP are now “hand-in-gloves”. “Where were these armoured vehicles when the Pahalgam attack took place? Why couldn’t you save those lives? Where were these vehicles when Pulwama happened? Where were the forces when the Delhi blast took place? Manipur has been burning for three years now. Why can’t you hold a meeting in Manipur?,” she said.Banerjee has alleged that BJP leaders disrespected Bengal icons daily. “From Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose to Swami Vivekananda, they haven’t spared anyone. You even disrespected Gandhiji by removing his name from 100-days work. We immediately renamed our 100-days work for him. We named it Mahatmashree.”Story continues below this ad“We purchased the ancestral house of Swami Vivekananda in Kolkata’s Shimla Street and Sister Nivedita’s house in Darjeeling and handed both the houses to Sri Ramakrishna Mission. We did the same with Sister Nivedita’s house in Kolkata,” she added.