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Journalism of Courage
As Parliament witnessed the unprecedented suspension on 78 Opposition MPs Monday – the most sweeping such action in a single day — Trinamool Congress chief and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said the Government was behaving in a super autocratic manner and did not have the “moral ground” to run the House.
In Delhi to attend the meeting of the INDIA bloc leaders Tuesday, Banerjee, speaking to a group of journalists, said the government was resorting to en masse suspension of opposition MPs because it was afraid. As for the INDIA bloc, she said the parties will sit together and discuss the way forward on all issues, including seat sharing, but argued the alliance need not project a prime ministerial face.
Banerjee was cautious on the inner dynamics of the alliance and parried questions on tension between parties within. She was scathing against the Government and the BJP accusing it of controlling the media and choking the voice of the people in Parliament by suspending MPs from the Opposition.
“They suspended 46 members from the Lok Sabha. Even Satabdi Roy, she is a filmstar. She said I have not done anything, even she was suspended. Sougata Ray — can you imagine? Such a senior leader, he is also suspended. Everybody is suspended. I understand they can suspend one or two for any bad calls…They can do that. But it is not that collectively they can suspend everybody,” Banerjee said.
“What do they think? The House is supreme…If the House is supreme…then why are they so afraid? If they have the majority members, they are passing all the Bills by voice vote…if they suspend all the members, how can they raise their voice. They are passing three important Bills — very important criminal law bills. We all have said that let the new government come, elections are just three-four months away, why are they taking a decision right now,” she said.
Asked why the MPs had been suspended, she said: “Because they (the Government) are afraid. If they have so much of a majority why don’t they allow opposition?…Who will raise the voice of the people? The voice of the people has been choked. Let them suspend the House first. They have no moral ground to run this House. To suspend or expel the opposition fully how they will run the House. It is a mockery of democracy.”
Asked whether the INDIA bloc should project a PM face, she said “when so many political parties are there together, it is a democracy. Different states, different views, different opinions, different people…but ultimately INDIA is a platform where we are fighting together. The BJP doesn’t have any allies. The NDA is gone, it is only the BJP. We are not like that, we have different political parties. So it will be better (to decide on the leader) after the elections. We have to see the results, then all the parties will decide.”
She said the “first priority” of the INDIA parties is to “save the motherland from disaster.”
“What is going on now is super autocracy. That is not desired by anybody. Even press people cannot open their mouths. From the party office, they give the information since morning that you have to run this, you should not run this. The Opposition has no space in the media now. In a democratic set-up three things are very important: judiciary, people and the third pillar is the media (but) now the media is powerless. I have no disrespect for reporters, journalists, but owners are being threatened…the media is not running the media,” she said.
Asked if the non-BJP voters will unite as envisaged by the alliance, she said: “They will be united…if they see the leaders of the umbrella are united.” When she was asked if parties will finalise seat-sharing at Tuesday’s meeting, Banerjee said: “It is not that easy. In principle, if you make a policy decision, then everything will run smoothly.” TMC sources had suggested that the party was not happy with the delay in seat-sharing talks. Asked whether it was late, she said: “It is not late. Better late than never.”
Banerjee did not get drawn into questions on whether the Congress should have entered into seat-sharing arrangements in the recently held Assembly elections or treated allies with little more respect. “I don’t have any comments. Past is past. Let us think of the future.”
On whether a three-way alliance among the TMC, Congress and the Left is possible in West Bengal, Banerjee said: “First, mentally you have to prepare, principally you have to agree…then maybe. One or two political parties may not agree but if the majority parties agree for a seat sharing one-to-one then automatically (we) will come together. I don’t have any grievances against anybody. I have ideological differences. Because they (the Left) are working with the BJP… I don’t have any vendetta, I can work with anybody.”
Asked about Opposition parties complaining against EVMs, she said, “That is true. Absolutely correct. We want 100 percent VVPAT. The infrastructure is already there. Why are they not implementing that?”
Banerjee will meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi Wednesday. Asked whether she would raise the issue of pause on Central funds, she said: “They have stopped all the money for Bengal…they are bulldozing the federal structure in every opposition state.”
She alleged that the Centre was insisting that the name of the Prime Minister and the logo of the BJP be used in welfare schemes. “If they ask us to give the symbol of the India government, give the symbol of both the government of India and the government of West Bengal, we don’t have a problem. They cannot impose that we have to give the BJP symbol. (On) G-20, we never raised the issue because that was an international programme. Now we cannot tolerate this…Just because they have a majority, they can do whatever they like? After this talking…they may arrest all of us. They want an election without any opposition,” she added.
