NEW DELHI: West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday accused Union home minister Amit Shah of behaving like an “acting Prime Minister” and cautioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi to not repose too much faith in him.Banerjee compared Shah to Mir Zafar, the 18th-century military general who betrayed Nawab Siraj ud-Daulah in the Battle of Plassey.“Shah may one day become his Mir Zafar. Whatever the Election Commission is doing in the name of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls is at Shah’s behest. Unfortunately, the PM is aware of all his deeds,” she said, as quoted by PTI.

‘Bengal is not Gujarat’

Banerjee made the remarks after returning to Kolkata from a visit to the flood-affected areas of the state. Earlier, while speaking in Bagdogra, she launched a sharp attack on PM Modi over his comments on the recent bridge collapse in Mirik.Targeting PM Modi, Banerjee said that Bengal is “not Gujarat,” referencing the 2022 Morbi bridge collapse in Gujarat, which claimed over 130 lives.“It has rained heavily across the country — just look at how many people have died in Uttarakhand. I won’t name other places, because I don’t play politics over natural disasters,” she said, adding, “I remember when a bridge collapsed during the Left Front government. See, there are bridges that have been standing for 100 to 150 years. We had already started building a new bridge in Mirik, and it will be inaugurated before the next monsoon. In the meantime, we are also constructing a temporary bridge, which will be completed in 15 days.”The chief minister also criticised the central government over alleged lack of support and resources. “You do not give funds to Bengal for flood relief. How does BJP make tall claims?” she said, while also taking a swipe at airfare hikes from Bagdogra to Kolkata. “You provided flood relief somewhere due to elections. You will fill your coffers for elections but you do not have funds for floods”“But you raised the Bagdogra-Kolkata airfare to Rs 18,000; a flight ticket via Delhi costs Rs 40,000 now. This is a horrifying conduct of a horrifying government.”Mamata Banerjee confirmed that relief operations are underway in the affected regions. “As far as the things here (flood-affected areas in WB) are concerned, I am sending all the relief materials. I sent 400 packets to Mirik yesterday. Kits are being sent to Nagrakata, Siliguri, Maynaguri, and Alipurduar. I have sent my Panchayat Minister. We are doing all relief works,” she said. She also met 21 displaced families and announced that 500 relief kits, including blankets, rice, dal, dry food, and milk, had been distributed. About 1,000 stranded tourists were safely evacuated in 45 buses.Banerjee addressed attacks on BJP leaders Khagen Murmu and Shankar Ghosh while they were visiting flood-hit areas, noting, “I met him (Khagen Murmu), he is a little injured in his ears. But he is diabetic, so he is under observation. I wish him a speedy recovery.” She also condemned the assault on the TMC office in Tripura, with MP Saayoni Ghosh saying, “We condemn this…we are going to assess the situation and give a message to our workers that they are not alone.”The chief minister said rehabilitation work is progressing with new roads being built in Rohini, a temporary bridge under construction in Mirik, and repairs ongoing at Nagrakata. She promised a personal visit next week to oversee the relief efforts. “Next week I will be going again to oversee the relief work by myself. We will also have to make arrangements for the jobs we have promised (to the deceased) in the next 15 days,” she said.North Bengal has been battered by floods and landslides over the past week claiming at least 32 lives and leaving several missing, and stranded thousands.(With inputs from agencies)