Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar was today forced to cut short his inaugural address at the newly formed Assembly amid sparring between him and the state government over the text prepared and whether he is bound to follow it or can deviate.
The ruckus by opposition BJP MLAs who took offence after finding “no mention” of post-poll violence in the speech compelled Dhankhar to truncate it. Dhankhar could barely speak for four minutes as BJP MLAs, carrying posters and pictures of alleged victims of post-poll violence, rushed to the well of the House to stage a protest. The address began at 2 pm sharp and ended at 2.04 pm, as his voice became inaudible amid the ongoing uproar, Assembly sources said.
He then tabled the speech and left for the day which was rife with speculation of display of rift between Dhankhar and the government. Dhankhar was escorted to his car by Speaker Biman Banerjee and chief minister Mamata Banerjee. Assembly Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari however attributed their cause of protest at to the state government’s alleged omission of post-poll violence in the text prepared by the state government.
“The speech, drafted by the TMC dispensation, said there has been no case of any violence, rape or attack on women after the party formed its new government in the state. All incidents of violence, according to the speech, took place before the new government was sworn in. We had to protest against this blatant lie,” Adhikari maintained.
Lauding the governor for raising his voice against cases of post-poll violence in the state over the past one month, the BJP leader claimed that the TMC government was “trying to suppress the truth”. “We don’t blame the governor. He was forced to read out the speech prepared by the state government,” Adhikari said, adding that his party wants to hold day-long discussions in the House on post-poll violence and the recently held fake vaccination drive in the city.
“During an all-party meeting, we had put forth these demands, but none of them was addressed. We will continue to hold protests if our demand for discussion is not met with,” he said. Reacting to BJP’s protest, the TMC said the saffron party has set a “new precedence in anarchy”.
“What they (BJP MLAs) did today is unprecedented and unacceptable in a parliamentary democracy,” TMC chief whip Nirmal Ghosh pointed out. Earlier today, the budget session was conducted according to rules and regulations as CM and the Speaker welcomed governor, complying with protocols. The governor’s draft had the mention of the state of West Bengal being the most “safest state” and the city of Kolkata as the “safest city”.
The state government in its bid to uphold unity and harmony in the society had taken strong action by arresting 93 persons and legal action taken against 477 for fake posts so far, the governor’s draft speech read. The state budget for 2021- 22 is likely to be placed in the House on 7 July. The Assembly’s inaugural session during the day also saw the chief minister and her former protege Adhikari coming face-to-face for the first time since the elections and the titanic battle of Nandigram.