BJP alleges 'parallel govt', constitutional breakdown in Bengal

Kolkata, Jan 11 (PTI) West Bengal BJP president Samik Bhattacharya on Sunday alleged that a parallel government is operating in the state, besides claiming a complete breakdown of constitutional governance under the Trinamool Congress.

Addressing a press conference here, Bhattacharya alleged that the elected government no longer exercises real authority.

Bhattacharya was alluding to the I-PAC episode of January 8, when Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee unexpectedly visited the office of political consultancy firm and the residence of its director Pratik Jain during an ED raid.

She had also been seen coming out of the Jain residence with several documents, including a green file. According to sources, several files had been brought out of the office of the I-PAC, which provides political consultancy to the TMC, during the search and placed in the CM’s vehicle.

Bhattacharya alleged that an "individual or private agency outside the constitutional framework" has been running the administration for a long time, issuing instructions to the police and influencing panchayat-related decisions.

"The chief minister is occupying the chair, but the government is being run from elsewhere. This is not just illegal, it is a betrayal of the people of Bengal," he said.

Bhattacharya questioned the authority of the chief minister in intervening during an Enforcement Directorate raid at a private office as part of its probe into the alleged coal scam-linked money laundering case.

The state BJP president alleged that Banerjee forcibly took away the "green file" from the central probe agency officers with the help of senior bureaucrats and the Director General of Police.

Raising suspicions of evidence tampering, Bhattacharya questioned whether the files contained links to coal scams, hawala transactions and money trails to Goa.

It was alleged by the ED that Rs 45 crore kickbacks generated from the Delhi excise policy “scam” were moved by the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) for its 2022 Goa assembly election campaign. The agency claimed Pratik Jain “handled” I-PAC operations in Goa.

Bhattacharya also alleged that more documents may have been removed by the West Bengal government officers than officially acknowledged.

"Why were IPS officers and state-paid bodyguards used like hired bouncers?" he asked.

The BJP leader also condemned the alleged attack on Leader of the Opposition Suvendu Adhikari on Saturday while returning from Purulia.

Bhattacharya claimed that top state administration officials had been working like party cadres, and accused them of aiding unconstitutional acts.

Referring to the CM’s role in the I-PAC raid case and the recent attack on the leader of the opposition Suvendu Adhikari, he said, “There is a complete constitutional breakdown in the state." Following the chaos at the Salt Lake stadium here after football legend Lionel Messi’s event last month, the BJP leader said that the DGP was served a show-cause notice merely “for suggesting a refund to spectators”.

People failed to have a glimpse of the Argentine player from the galleries, even after paying thousands of rupees, since a group of people was surrounding him on the field.

The BJP leader also accused the state government of blocking central welfare and infrastructure projects, including 43 railway projects and the Ayushman Bharat health scheme.

He claimed nearly 40 lakh migrant workers from West Bengal were being denied healthcare benefits outside the state due to the non-implementation of Ayushman cards.

Bhattacharya further alleged that more than 3,500 companies had shifted their headquarters out of West Bengal, followed by an outflow of students and workers due to a lack of investment and security.

Calling the TMC government "autocratic, anti-constitutional and vengeful", Bhattacharya claimed that over 300 BJP workers had been killed in the state over the past 14 years and opposition voices were being systematically suppressed.

He said the BJP and the people of Bengal are now united in their resolve to oust the TMC government, which he termed "inhuman and unconstitutional".

Assembly elections in the state are due in a few months. PTI BSM NN