‘Guv speaking in the voice of Central govt’

At a conclave organised by Delhi’s AAP government on “Cooperative Federalism” in September, Banerjee had said that she was “shocked to know, thanks to a letter from the Home Ministry, that the Bengal governor had written to the Centre for Central forces for civic elections in the state”.

“The Chief Minister is still sitting on Dharna inside the secretariat demanding immediate withdrawal of the army”, he said. The army is stopping traffic and putting stickers on the vehicles.

Letters sent to various state government agencies by the Army on November 23 onwards stated that it had informed the state government about its routine exercise. But the state government said the Army did not obtain “permission” to conduct the exercise and rushed into it; law and order was very much a state government domain, seniors in the government said. This time, however, Mamata Banerjee crossed a line that no politician of the country either has the right to or the moral competency for.

Mamata- who has declared war on the BJP-led government at the centre over its ban on 500 and 1000-rupee notes aimed at curbing corruption and black or untaxed money – is just back in Kolkata after taking her protests to Lucknow in Uttar Pradesh and Patna in Bihar.

Speaking to reporters late Thursday night at “Nabanna”, the state secretariat in Kolkata, she said, “I will stay at the secretariat to guard our democracy”. “Even RBI has not given many State Govt’s critically necessary funds despite announcements & promises”, the Trinamool supremo said earlier in the social media website.

Minister of Parliamentary Affairs, Anant Kumar said the exercise was also carried out previous year.

“I feel whatever Mamataji is doing, the way she is raising her voice against the Centre, is a good thing”.

The Army, the minister said, was conducting a routine exercise in Bengal and other states, as it had done in Uttar Pradesh and Jharkhand a year ago.

“Routine exercise in all NE states. Don’t defame the army”, Tripathi said.

“This is an exercise carried out for our operational purposes”. However, the state government refused while saying that the Army did not obtain permission to conduct the exercise and rushed into it.

“We are carrying out the operation in 80 different points across the East and North East region. The Army was collecting routine data”. “Without asking the State Government, the chief secretary or the DGP, toll plazas of State Government are taken over”, he added.

The Army at the Eastern Command said that it was a regular exercise and was done in consultation with the Kolkata Police.

West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee finally left the Secretariat office on Friday evening after spending 36 hours in the building.