Kolkata/IBNS: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is "fit" to replace Narendra Modi as the next Prime Minister, said Nobel Laureate economist Amartya Sen triggering a response from the Trinamool Congress (TMC) supremo and a snub from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Speaking to news agency PTI, 90-year-old Sen said it "would be a mistake" to think the 2024 General Elections will be a one-sided battle in favour of the country's ruling BJP.

The upcoming Lok Sabha polls, where Prime Minister Modi will face re-election for the second time, will have the importance of the regional players.

Sen told PTI, "I think the DMK and TMC are important parties and the Samajwadi Party has some standing but I do not knowwhether that could be extended or not.

"It would be a mistake to take the dismissive view that there is no other party that can take the place of the BJP since it has established itself as a party with a vision that is inclined in the direction of Hindus over the rest of the country."

Reacting to the comment, Banerjee, a three-term Chief Minister with an experience of being union ministers in the past, told a Bengali news channel, "Amartya Sen is a world-renowned intellectual. His insight shows us the path."

"His advice is an order for us. His insight and evaluation of the present situation of the country should be taken seriously by everyone," she added.

Snubbing Sen's remark, Union Minister and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Dharmendra Pradhan said, "Anyone can have opinions in a democracy but there is no vacancy for the post of the Prime Minister."

Slamming Sen for indulging himself in political affairs, West Bengal BJP leader and Lok Sabha MP Dilip Ghosh said, "Due to age, he doesn't understand situations. He could have spoken on economics but why is he speaking on politics? Why is he taking so much pressure? It is not ideal for his age.

"Even if Mamata Banerjee wins 42 seats, she would not be able to become the Prime Minister. He (Amartya Sen) is a Nobel Laureate but can't he understand this?"

Though Mamata never expressed her wish to become the Prime Minister, she often tours Delhi, hobnobs with key regional leaders in a bid to stitch an alliance against the BJP, which is running the central government for the second term.

Various TMC members have spoken in favour of "sending Didi" to Delhi expressing their veiled wish to see Mamata as the next Prime Minister.

Mamata's landslide win over an aggressive BJP in the 2021 West Bengal assembly elections had catapulted her to become an apparent anti-Modi face nationally until her TMC government was marred with corruption allegations on various fronts back home.