Kolkata: Chief minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday urged the corporate world to counter a “political propaganda” to “defame” West Bengal and highlight to the other states about the development she has ushered in the state during her rule of eight years.  Ms Banerjee was speaking after inaugurating ITC Royal Bengal hotel. In an oblique reference to the BJP, she complained, “Some people defame Bengal saying it is not a peaceful state. But I can give you the gurantee that everyone knows how peaceful Bengal is. Everyone can move from one place to another freely. Not a single manday has been lost here."

She observed, “So you cannot say Bengal is a bad state. Politically you can say it is a bad state. But if you say from your points of view of economic, development and peace, Bengal is however better than any other state. I will not compromise with anyone to say that Bengal is doing the bad things. It is a political propaganda. Some people want to defame Bengal. We do not like it." The Trinamul Congress supremo told the audience, "We have international convention centre in Rajarhat. We are also building a similar one, sea-facing, in Digha. So many things are coming up from the tourism point of view. Home tourism is a big concept now. See the beauty in your own state. Then you can explain it to the other states also."

She added, "I will appeal my friends whenver you go to other states, please say some about how Bengal is doing. Only some people are trying to give it a bad name to defame it. Please give a good name. Sometimes you must think what it was 34 years ago. You have to say what it is now."