Trinamool blames Modi for 'demonetisation deaths', to meet President

New Delhi/Kolkata, January 10 (IANS) The Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress, which has been agitating seeking the ouster of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on Tuesday held him responsible for over 120 deaths due to the note ban. The party said it will approach President Pranab Mukherjee to seekhis intervention.   At the conclusion of Trinamool's three day nationwide stir against demonetisation and political vendetta by the Modi government, party MPs will meet Mukherjee on Wednesday where they are expected to raise both the issues.   "We are meeting the President on Wednesday afternoon," said party MP Sultan Ahmed.   According to sources, besides demonetisation they will also be raising the issue of a "national government" replacing Modi as the Prime Minister.   Trinamool supremo and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has mooted a National Government headed by BJP veteran L.K. Advani or Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley or Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh.   Earlier in the day, Banerjee tweeted details of 122 people who, she claimed, had died due to the cash crunch following the November 8 demonetisation.   "Modi, you are arrogant. You are responsible for 120+ (122) deaths," she said posting statewise details of the "victims" including the reason for their deaths.   As per the list, Uttar Pradesh, at 32, has the highest number of deaths followed by Bengal with 13 and Maharashtra with 11.   Banerjee claimed that in Modi's home state Gujarat, five people have died due to demonetisation. While three of them died in bank queues, a woman committed suicide after failing to buy food for her family and a bank cashier ended his life owing to stress.   Later addressing an event in Bengal's Burdwan district, she said the "Tughlaqi" decision (demonetisation) has crippled the economy and demanded Modi to own up the responsibility of the "demonetisation deaths".   "Anyone who speaks out against the Centre is branded corrupt and agencies are sent after them," said Banerjee who has been accusing Modi of vendetta politics following the CBI arresting two of her MPs - Tapas Paul and Sudip Bandyopadhyay - in a chit fund scam.   Ridiculing Modi's plan of a cashless Indian economy, she accused the Prime Minister of being a "salesman of plastic currency".   On the second day of the anti-Modi stir, Trinamool MPs in the national capital, blamed Modi for destroying the economy and asserted that their fight will continue until he is removed from office.   "The government's premise of demonetisation is totally wrong. With this one decision, Modi has destroyed the entire economy," said Trinamool MP Saugata Roy.   "Agriculture has suffered massively and the country is heading towards a situation where there will be an acute food shortage.   "People across the sectors have suffered except for the big corporate houses," he added.   Holding placards that read "Honourable President Please Intervene" and "Only National Government Can Save India", some 35 Trinamool MPs staged day long dharna at Delhi's South Avenue.   Protesting the arrests of its MPs in the Rose Valley chit fund scam, the Trinamool questioned why some of the BJP members with "links with the company" have not been arrested.   "During demonetisation protests in Parliament, Modi reached out to Sudip Da (Bandyopadhyay), but he refused to meet him, hence, this political vendetta.   "Modi has lowered the status and dignity of the Prime Minister's office. Our fight will continue until Modi is removed from office," said Party MP Kalyan Banerjee   Protesting in Odisha's Bhubaneswar, Trinamool General Secretary Subrata Bakshi said the party will intensify its agitation against Modi.   "Our current campaign is spread to eight-nine states, but we will take our agitation to all the 29 states of the country in the next few months. Our agitation will not stop until Modi's ouster," he said.   The Trinamool on Monday launched its three-day "Modi Hatao, Desh Bachao" (remove Modi, save the country) campaign holding demonstrations across Odisha, Punjab, Bihar, Manipur, Tripura, Assam and Jharkhand, besides West Bengal and the national capital.