West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar (File)GOVERNOR JAGDEEP Dhankhar on Friday hit out at Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee for publicly asking a senior police officer, Purba Medinipur Superintendent of Police K Amarnath, whether the Governor called him and instructed him anything.
He was referring to an interaction between the CM and the officer during an administrative meeting in Kolkata on Thursday. Although the Governor did not immediately react, he tweeted a video of the interaction later on Thursday. On Friday, he again tweeted and claimed that it was a “spinal blow” to the state police force.
“What a worrisome scenario! CM Mamata Banerjee in full media glare pulls up Purba Medinipur SP by asking “Did governor call you’ is serious issue needing focussed reflection @IASassociation @IPS_Association. Unfortunate- A spinal blow by CM to Police @WBPolice @KolkataPolice.” Dhankhar wrote.
On Thursday, at the Netaji Indoor Stadium in Kolkata, Banerjee asked Purba Medinipur SP K Amarnath, “Are you afraid to work there? Does the Governor call you? Don’t do this, don’t do that, don’t do it… Of course, even if he says that, you will not say it now. But you don’t need to be bothered about it. Remember, you are working for the state government.”
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PremiumPremiumAfter Dhankhar assumed office in 2019, he has been criticising the state government on many issues. The prolonged verbal tussle between the CM and the Governor reached a flashpoint on Monday.
After a Cabinet meeting at the secretariat, Banerjee spoke to mediapersons and said she was “forced” to block Dhankhar on Twitter because of his “unethical and unconstitutional” statements. She also alleged that the Governor was acting like a “super watchman” and treating government officials like “his servants”.
The TMC also said they would bring a motion against the Governor in Parliament. On Wednesday, the Governor reacted sharply to the CM’s allegations, saying that what she said “carries no credibility”.
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