Vote-on-account a farewell letter: Bhupender Yadav targets Mamata government ahead of polls

BJP insiders said that after considering feedback from party leaders and the public, the amount could be revised and a more attractive package announced in the party’s election manifesto

Kolkata, February 12, 2026, dmanewsdesk: Union minister for environment, forest and climate change Bhupender Yadav on Wednesday claimed that the vote-on-account tabled by the Mamata Banerjee government on February 5 was a “farewell letter” from a government that is leaving the state in dire straits.

“When we are building tomorrow’s India, the corrupt Trinamool Congress government has been keeping the state under mortgage. The most important point is that the low capital expenditure in the state budget shows that the Bengal government has been borrowing continuously to meet its revenue expenditure, without any concept of generating income,” Yadav, who is also the BJP’s in-charge for the forthcoming Assembly elections, told a news conference at a private hotel in Salt Lake.

“This is the last budget of this government,” he added.

Yadav was accompanied by the leader of the Opposition, Suvendu Adhikari and the chief spokesperson for the state BJP, Debjit Sarkar, as they sought to highlight the successes of the Union budget presented by the Narendra Modi government.

In the state’s vote-on-account, the Mamata Banerjee government announced a series of schemes to support different sections of society.

The BJP has already announced that it would provide ₹3,000 per month to women in Bengal to counter Mamata’s ₹500 hike under her flagship Lakshmir Bhandar scheme. BJP insiders said that after considering feedback from party leaders and the public, the amount could be revised and a more attractive package announced in the party’s election manifesto.

Yadav pointed out that BJP-ruled states also provide financial assistance to women. However, he said that apart from monthly support, those governments also provide up to ₹2 lakh to help women become self-reliant — a policy he claimed is missing in Bengal.

“He indicated that with sustained support, women should be made self-reliant, which is important for them as well. It also suggests that the party may announce such a one-time hefty financial package to woo women voters, who are believed to be a dedicated vote bank of Trinamool because of direct benefit transfer schemes like Lakshmir Bhandar,” a BJP leader said.

Alongside this narrative, BJP leaders have also been trying to appeal to the educated middle class by focusing on what they describe as Mamata’s emphasis on doles at the cost of key sectors such as science and industry.

“This is the state where renowned scientists like Jagadish Chandra Bose and Satyendra Nath Bose were born. However, the government here allocates ₹5,713 crore for madrasa education, while science and technology receive only ₹82 crore. The industry sector, which can generate consistent income for the state, has been allocated only Rs 1,400 crore. North Bengal, where nearly three crore people live, has been allocated only ₹910 crore,” Yadav said.

Tanmoy Ghosh, a Trinamool state general secretary, said: “As they cannot find a way to counter the love people have for our party and chief minister Mamata Banerjee, they are trying to play down the state government’s role and vote on account. Those dreaming of winning the election are living in a fool’s paradise as the people are ready to bring Mamata Banerjee for a fourth term.”

Source: The Telegraph online