I will make lotus bloom in your house: Suvendu to TMC's Abhishek Banerjee

East Midnapore: Newly-inducted Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Suvendu Adhikari took a jibe at Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Abhishek Banerjee on Tuesday by calling him 'Babusona' and said he would make the lotus bloom in Banerjee's house.

Addressing a public meeting in Bhagwanpur, Adhikari said, "I had told Babusona (Abhishek Banerjee) lotus would bloom in my house. Soumendu (Suvendu's brother) joined BJP. Do not worry Babusona, I will make lotus bloom in your house too by February. By Ram Navami in April, lotus will bloom everywhere."

Adhikari said that West Bengal accounts for 18 per cent of total deaths of doctors in the country due to the COVID-19. "The TMC government has killed doctors by giving raincoats instead of PPE kits," he added.

The BJP leader further criticised the state government for rising unemployment. "This government abolished 5.5 lakh permanent posts while the state has countless unemployed youth with higher education degrees," said Adhikari.

Adhikari, a former TMC minister and Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA), joined the BJP in the presence of Union Home Minister Amit Shah at a rally in Midnapore in West Bengal on December 19.

BJP has been aggressively campaigning in West Bengal over the past few months with top leaders Amit Shah, JP Nadda visiting the state.

Elections for 294 Assembly seats in West Bengal are slated to take place later this year.