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Congress-Trinamool feud escalates after Bengal reshuffle
Tuesday January 17, 2012 08:27:47 AM,
IANS
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Kolkata: Nearly eight
months into her stint, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee
Monday inducted two new ministers and reshuffled of portfolios,
triggering shrill protests from alliance partner Congress after
secretariat sources revealed that wings of two of its ministers
had been clipped.
However, no list of ministerial portfolio was made available to
the media till late at night.
According to secretariat sources, Congress minister of state Manoj
Chakraborty who had attacked the chief minister when she asked his
party to walk out of the alliance if it so desired, lost his two
portfolios -- parliamentary affairs and small and cottage
industries.
Chakraborty's party colleague Abu Hena, the cabinet minister for
fisheries and food processing, was divested of the food processing
portfolio which went to Trinamool's Ujjal Biswas who presently in
charge of youth affairs.
Both Chakraborty and Hena are from Murshidabad district, a
Congress stronghold where Banerjee's bete noire and Congress MP
Adhir Chowdhury holds sway.
Chowdhury, along with Raiganj MP Deepa Dasmunshi had led the
verbal assault on the chief minister during the recent Congress-Trinamool
spat over renaming of Indira Bahvan, death of farmers and beating
of a college principal by Trinamool activists in Raganj.
Chakraborty was furious at the move.
"This is completely unwarranted and unacceptable to us. We have
been sent to the cabinet by the high authorities of our party, by
(Congress chief) Sonia Gandhi and not by any Tom, Dick or Harry.
There is too much dictatorship, it is high time we moved out of
the alliance," he said.
Chakrabarty also said Congress will contest the upcoming Panchayat
elections in West Bengal on its own.
"There is no question of alliance for the Panchayat elections. We
will contest on our own".
"I had dared to oppose the government's move to rename the Indira
Bhavan, that's why I have been meted out this treatment. No matter
what I will continue to oppose anything unjust," said Chakrabarty
adding that he will consult his party leaders before deciding on
accepting the ministry offered to him.
Earlier in the day, Governor M.K. Narayanan administered the oaths
of office and secrecy to Trinamool's Arup Biswas and Chandrima
Bhattacharya at the Raj Bhavan. Biswas was sworn in as minister of
state (independent charge) and Bhattacharya as minister of state.
Bhattacharya later said she had been made minister of state in
health department.
The poor state of affairs in government hospitals - reflected in a
series of crib deaths, incidence of rats nibbling at patients,
death of a pregnant woman after she was allegedly refused
admission, and a case of theft of a newborn - have triggered
widespread criticism. Banerjee herself holds the health portfolio.
The incidents had sparked demand from the opposition that Banerjee
give up health and appoint a separate minister for the crucial
department.
In fact, Leader of Opposition Surya Kanta Mishra said appointing a
minister of state for the health department will not do. "What is
needed is that the busy chief minister should give up the
portfolio and allot it to another cabinet minister".
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