INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
there were reports of his rally in Kolkata being denied permission by the government of Mamata Banerjee - with whom he has been sparring
over the Assam citizens' list
He need not have bothered, with the Bengal police clarifying that no rally request had been turned down."Amit Shah can go wherever he wants
Who is stopping him," Mamata Banerjee told TheIndianSubcontinent between her rounds of opposition leaders' homes.Four years ago, Kolkata's
civic body had refused permission for a rally of Amit Shah
The BJP finally obtained permission from the Calcutta High Court for rally, held in November 2014.The face-off had fuelled the animosity
between the BJP and Mamata Banerjee's Trinamool Congress
Bengal is one of the few non-BJP, non-Congress states and ranks high on the target list of Mr Shah along with Kerala
The BJP chief, who has handed his party a target of 50 per cent Lok Sabha seats in Bengal, plans to visit Kolkata and hold a rally on August
11.As of now, the BJP has minimal presence in the state assembly with just three seats
In 2014, the party won just two Lok Sabha seats from the state
But over the last two years, the BJP has managed to dislodge the Left and become the main opposition party in the state.The Chief Minister
is currently locked in battle with Mr Shah over the draft citizens' list in Assam
The National Register of Citizens, which left out the names of 40 lakh people, has been bitterly opposed by Ms Banerjee, who is in Delhi to
meet Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh over the issue.
