Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari today launched a scathing attack on the state government, particularly targeting the recent directive issued by the district inspector of schools in East Midnapur.

The directive allegedly threatened students and teachers with consequences if they participated in any movement not sanctioned by the school education department except any departmental programme.

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Adhikari accused chief minister Mamata Banerjee’s administration of being gripped by fear as public discontent grows across the state. “Hirak Rani is trembling with fear. The spontaneous public outrage has cornered her government and shaken her entire administration,” Adhikari stated.

He highlighted the widespread public movement in West Bengal, which has seen increasing numbers of people taking to the streets. The catalyst for this unrest, according to Adhikari, is a call for the ‘Nabanna Abhijan’, a protest march to the state secretariat, initiated by an apolitical group of students. Adhikari claimed that the state government, unnerved by the momentum of this movement, had taken legal steps to suppress it, first raising the issue in the Supreme Court and then approaching the Calcutta High Court. The Opposition leader condemned the recent order by the school education department as an attempt to prevent students from exercising their right to peaceful protest. “Let me remind the CM that it is a free country, and such diktats have no impact. This is a public movement; you can’t stop people from doing what they are willing to do out of their free will,” Adhikari asserted.

Citing a Supreme Court ruling that the state should not obstruct peaceful protesters, Adhikari declared that the power of the people had shaken the ruling establishment. “We all know that the power of the people has rattled you, and you are afraid that nobody is scared of you anymore,” he said, adding that the chief minister had lost the moral authority to govern and should resign immediately.

BJP’s West Bengal co-observer and national IT cell in-charge Amit Malviya, has raised concerns over what he perceives as a conspiracy against the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) personnel deployed at the R G Kar Medical College and Hospital, that they may face conspiracy plotted by ruling party. Malviya has alleged that powerful individuals within the government, led by chief minister Mamata Banerjee, are involved in a plot to malign the CISF contingent stationed at the hospital. According to Malviya, the purported conspiracy involves using a woman, potentially someone with ties to the ruling Trinamul Congress (TMC) to accuse the CISF personnel of misconduct, such as molestation. He described this as a recurring tactic employed by the West Bengal government to discredit central forces, citing previous incidents as examples of this pattern. “The CISF personnel must remain vigilant. They should consider using body cameras to protect themselves from any false allegations. Mamata Banerjee is known to go to great lengths to shield the corrupt and criminal elements operating within the R G Kar Medical College and Hospital.”

These allegations come amidst ongoing tensions between the BJP and TMC in West Bengal, with the state’s political climate remaining highly charged. Malviya’s remarks underscore the deepening mistrust between the central and state authorities, particularly concerning the deployment and actions of central security forces in the region.