"Mamata destroyed Bengal; now wants to destroy India": BJP's Agnimitra Paul slams CM Mamata

Kolkata (West Bengal) [India], December 8 : Bharatiya Janata Party leader Agnimitra Paul on Sunday slammed West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee over her 'willingness' to lead the INDIA bloc, stating that she had "destroyed Bengal" and that she now wants to destroy the whole country by leading the grand alliance.
Paul stated that the INDIA bloc's agenda to form its government by removing the Modi government was not fulfilled, and since then the INDIA alliance has lost some major assembly elections, particularly in Haryana and Maharashtra.
"Mamata Banerjee is not even able to handle her state today...First, handle your state...You have destroyed Bengal, and now you want to destroy the country?" she said.
"The agenda of the INDIA alliance to form its government by removing the Modi government has not been fulfilled...Since then, they have lost all the elections that have been held," she added.
She further remarked on internal disagreements within the alliance, saying, "Akhilesh Yadav is saying that nothing will happen with the Congress; Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi went to Sambhal alone, SP and TMC did not even join the Congress protest, and Mamata Banerjee is now saying that she wants to lead. They (the INDIA alliance parties) do not have any common policy or ideal."
Meanwhile, Congress leader Udit Raj today also criticised Mamata Banerjee amid conversations regarding the 'leadership' role in the INDIA bloc and questioned how a party that couldn't extend its leadership beyond Bengal could lead the whole country.
This comes after several Trinamool Congress leaders suggested that the INDIA bloc is lacking a 'strong leadership' and CM Mamata Banerjee should take over the role.
Earlier, TMC MP Kalyan Banerjee suggested that one strong leader is needed to lead the INDIA bloc following the defeat of Congress in the Haryana and Maharashtra assembly polls. He further said that the opposition alliance should be stronger to take on the BJP.
Following this, TMC MP Kirti Azad responded to suggestions by TMC leaders that Mamata Banerjee should lead the INDIA bloc following Congress' defeat in the Maharashtra assembly elections.
"Mamata Banerjee has a 100 per cent record. Whenever Prime Minister Narendra Modi faced a humiliating defeat, it was only in West Bengal... Whenever he comes to insult Bengal and its honour, her vote share increases," he said.
Nationalist Congress Party (NCP-SCP) chief Sharad Pawar also acknowledged the leadership potential of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, emphasising her prominence as a national leader and the competence of her party's representatives in Parliament.