In the latest turn of events in the ongoing “Cold War” between the West Bengal government and state Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar, West Bengal Assembly Speaker Biman Banerjee has complained against Governor Dhankhar.

Biman Banerjee, in a virtual meeting with the Speakers of different states and Speaker of the Lok Sabha Om Birla on Tuesday evening, complained that there has been “excessive interference” of Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar in parliamentary democracy and the functioning of the Assembly.

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Banerjee also complained that despite being passed by the Assembly, several bills are lying with the governor as he has not signed them. This is unprecedented in the history of West Bengal’s parliamentary democracy. Such a thing has never happened before, he said.

Jagdeep Dhankhar, who is on a tour to North Bengal since the last seven days, has run into controversy on several occasions with the state government.

For instance, just recently, Dhankhar had given a letter to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee in which he criticised the state government’s stand on the post-poll violence. In the letter, Dhankhar urged Mamata Banerjee “to be active to contain the violence in the state”.

Dhankhar even went to Delhi to meet President Ram Nath Kovind and Union Home Minister Amit Shah presumably to give a detailed report on the “lawlessness in the state”. Dhankhar also met several union ministers and discussed with them several issues of the state.

Biman Banerjee also held the Election Commission responsible for the COVID situation in the state, sources in the assembly confirmed.

Speaking in the virtual meeting, Banerjee had said that the state government including Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had urged several times to reduce the number of election phases but the Election Commission was adamant and that resulted in such a COVID situation in the state.

“We have been saying for a long time that the present governor is acting as the mouthpiece of a specific political party. He is not only interfering in the functioning of the state of affairs but is also maligning the West Bengal government,” senior TMC leader and MLA Tapas Roy said.

However, the West Bengal unit of the BJP came out in support of the governor and claimed that he had exposed the truth.

“The TMC is angry with the governor as he has exposed the lawless situation in the state. There have been complaints against me earlier, but all of them were baseless,” said Dilip Ghosh, the BJP state chief.

(With IANS inputs)