Kolkata, 07 March (H.S.) : West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress (TMC) chief Mamata Banerjee on Saturday alleged that R.N. Ravi, who is set to become the state’s new Governor, is a “worker of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)” and claimed that the sudden exit of C.V. Ananda Bose from the post was the result of pressure from the Centre.
Addressing supporters on the second day of her sit-in protest against the deletion of names from the electoral rolls, Banerjee accused the BJP-led central government of attempting to turn the Raj Bhavan into a political centre ahead of the Assembly elections.
“Have you seen how Ananda Bose was removed? I know everything. He was threatened. They want to distribute money from Raj Bhavan and turn it into a BJP office. But not every wish from Delhi will be fulfilled here,” she said.
Without citing specific examples, Banerjee also referred to Ravi’s tenure in Tamil Nadu, claiming that he had faced several observations from the Supreme Court during his time there. “The person who is coming here has reportedly been reprimanded several times by the Supreme Court. He is a BJP worker. But remember, West Bengal is a different place. What was done in Tamil Nadu will not work here,” she said.
The chief minister further accused the Centre of weakening constitutional institutions, alleging that the government in New Delhi was not allowing officials to complete their tenure. In this context, she also referred to former West Bengal Governor and former Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar.
Drawing a comparison with medieval ruler Muhammad bin Tughlaq, Banerjee said that if attempts were made to threaten the state, a political fight would be launched to bring down the BJP-led government at the Centre.
Her remarks come amid heightened political activity in the state following the sudden resignation of Governor C.V. Ananda Bose. Earlier, Banerjee had said that Union Home Minister Amit Shah had informed her that R.N. Ravi would take over as the new Governor of West Bengal, although he has not yet formally assumed office.
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Hindusthan Samachar / Priyanka Pandey
