After Bihar, NDA Will Form Governments in West Bengal and Tamil Nadu, Says Shah; Slams Congress for Opposing SIR

PTI, November 21, 2025, Morbi (Gujarat) :  Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday claimed that after securing a resounding victory in Bihar, the BJP-led NDA would also win the upcoming assembly elections in West Bengal and Tamil Nadu, and form governments there.

Speaking at an event in Morbi, Gujarat, where he inaugurated the district BJP’s newly-built headquarters, Shah accused the Congress of supporting and protecting infiltrators for the sake of vote bank politics, and urged the party to “undertake a course correction.”

The former BJP president emphasised that his party was committed to expelling every single infiltrator from the country, asserting that they had no right to participate in India’s democratic process.

Shah also criticised the Congress, the Trinamool Congress (TMC), and other opposition parties for opposing the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, which he said was part of the NDA government’s efforts to ensure a fair and transparent electoral process.

His comments on the SIR came a day after West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee wrote a strongly worded letter to Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, calling for an immediate halt to the exercise, which she described as “chaotic, coercive, and dangerous.”

Shah remarked, “When campaigning for the Bihar elections was ongoing, political pundits in Delhi predicted that the BJP and NDA would not succeed this time, and that we would also lose the upcoming assembly elections in West Bengal and Tamil Nadu.”

“But the people of Bihar gave the NDA a two-thirds majority, and our government under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Nitish Kumar was formed,” he said. “And today, I want to tell all those political pundits who predicted BJP’s decline during the Bihar polls, that BJP and NDA will form governments in West Bengal and Tamil Nadu as well,” he added.

Shah also attacked Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who had launched a ‘ghuspaithiya bachao yatra’ (march to save illegal infiltrators) during the Bihar elections. “It was shocking,” Shah said. “The party that led India’s freedom struggle is now demanding that infiltrators be allowed to stay in India. Just look at the downfall of Congress!”

According to Shah, the Congress held rallies in support of infiltrators to secure their vote bank. “They believed their vote bank would make them victorious. But the people had already made up their minds that they would only vote for BJP and NDA to make Bihar free of infiltrators,” he stated.

He also accused Congress and its allies, including the Samajwadi Party (SP), DMK, and TMC, of opposing the SIR exercise. “I want to ask these parties: how can a person who is not a citizen of India have the right to take part in our democratic process?” Shah asked.

When he asked the audience whether infiltrators should be allowed to stay in the country, the crowd responded with a firm “No.”

“Don’t worry. Let Congress and other parties do whatever they want. It is BJP’s resolve to expel every single infiltrator from the country,” Shah declared.

He continued, “How can infiltrators decide who will be the Chief Minister of any state or who will be the Prime Minister of this country? Our Constitution gives that power only to citizens, and we will not tolerate anyone trying to alter that.”

Shah then addressed Congress, TMC, and other opposition parties, saying, “You still have time to correct your course. Otherwise, you will lose whatever little you have left.”

He concluded by stating that the BJP now has the highest number of MLAs, MPs, and corporators in the country. “The BJP always prioritises the country’s interests, which is why it has achieved such success,” he said.

Ahead of Gujarat’s upcoming local body elections, Shah took a swipe at the Congress, stating that no matter how much effort they put in, the opposition party would eventually face a Bihar-like rout in the state.