Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Friday accused the BJP-led Centre of targeting Bengalis and using central agencies to destabilise her government ahead of the 2026 Assembly elections.

Addressing a massive protest rally in south Kolkata, Banerjee said, "If you speak in Bengali, they declare you Bangladeshi. They say that there are Rohingyas present in Bengal, but where are the Rohingyas?...If there are no Rohingyas in Assam, why has SIR not been started there? This is all being done because they are trying to come to power in Bengal as they did in Maharashtra and Haryana. But it is not possible."

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The Trinamool Congress supremo also levelled sharp allegations against the BJP, claiming misuse of central agencies and electoral manipulation.

“Senior BJP leaders in Delhi receive coal scam proceeds; I can furnish proof before public if needed,” she said, while alleging that “Police assaulted our MPs during protest in Delhi, but BJP gets red carpet welcome in Bengal.”

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Referring to Thursday’s Enforcement Directorate searches linked to political consultancy firm I-PAC, Banerjee said, “What I did yesterday was nothing wrong; they tried to steal my party's data.”

She further alleged electoral misconduct, saying, “BJP won Maharashtra polls by stealing mandate with EC's help; they want to repeat it in Bengal.”

Earlier in the day, Banerjee led a massive protest march from the 8B Bus Stand area to Hazra More, accompanied by senior ministers, MPs, MLAs and party workers, as the TMC mounted a show of strength against the ED action. Slogans accusing the Centre of “misusing central agencies for political vendetta” echoed through the streets.

The rally came a day after Banerjee made a surprise appearance at I-PAC chief Pratik Jain’s Loudon Street residence during an ED raid, an incident that has escalated into a wider Centre–state confrontation.

The march carried a distinctly Bengali cultural imprint, with party workers singing Pratul Mukhopadhyay’s iconic ‘Ami Banglay Gaan Gai’ and women blowing conch shells. Actor-politicians Dev and Soham Chakraborty were also present, adding star power to the mobilisation.

TMC leaders said the protest marked the beginning of a series of statewide agitations, signalling that Banerjee intends to take her political battle against the Centre back to the streets ahead of the high-stakes 2026 polls.