Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar today said he was shocked at the alleged blatant refusal by the chief marshal to intervene and arrest chaos inside the state assembly while he remarked that the Opposition must raise its standards.
Pandemonium prevailed inside the West Bengal assembly today on the first day of the session, when the governor was to start with his speech. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLAs rushed to the well of the House and began shouting slogans against the MLAs of the ruling party.
The Opposition members were protesting against alleged violence during the recent polls in 108 civic bodies. The ruckus inside made it seem impossible for the governor to present his speech as he attempted to restore decorum in the House by asking protestors to allow him to discharge his constitutional duties. While the BJP MLAs raised slogans, the speaker Biman Banerjee, Trinamul Congress MLAs, including chief minister Mamata Banerjee, were seen urging Mr Dhankhar to read his speech.
The governor, in his interaction with the Press, said today’s incident was unprecedented. He said such dilutions of democratic principles cannot be tolerated. The governor said it was the duty of the marshals to have intervened and restored order in the House. “The marshals are supposed to help the governor and the speaker to help arrest chaos and ensure decorum,” he said.
Dhankhar said he was shocked to learn that the secretary of the assembly gave in writing that he has conveyed to the marshal who has but declined. “This is a very serious development and must not be treated as a trivial matter. How can the chief marshal act in such a manner? Where are we heading?” he questioned. We cannot afford to dilute democratic principles and digress from constitutional norms, he remarked.
Taking a dig at the Opposition, the governor said that it is by the rule of democracy that some people will be elected to run a government but that does not render the Opposition irrelevant. “The Opposition is important to democracy but they must raise their standards,” he said.