After BJP national president Jagat Prakash Nadda accused the Mamata Banerjee government of “divide and rule” policy during his public address in Siliguri on Monday, Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Derek O’Brien issued a public statement on Twitter saying the BJP did everything to “divide and rule” India in over six years of its rule.

“The irony is not lost when the President of the BJP talks about ”divide and rule”. ”Divide and rule” is a ploy learnt from the colonial past and played out deviously every day by your party. Over the last six years, your party had done everything it can to ”divide and rule” people of this great nation,” Derek O”Brien said in a statement, addressed to Mr Nadda.

He said his party did a fact check of Mr Nadda’s latest public address in the state and found ”gaping holes” in it.

Also, we did a #FactCheck of your speech today. Like your two other ”senior” colleagues, there were gaping holes in it. But no- we will not defile this auspicious occasion,” he said calling the time of Durga Puja as the ”auspicious occasion”.

The TMC MP said Durga Puja is special for people of West Bengal and is not the occasion for politics.

Earlier on Monday, Mr Nadda while addressing a meeting in Siliguri said, “The current TMC government in West Bengal has employed a policy of divide-and-rule and only Prime Minister Narendra Modi has the ability to take everyone and grow together.”