Your direct attacks on me, my ministers transgression of Constitution: WB CM Mamata Banerjee to Guv Jagdeep Dhankhar
Kolkata/IBNS: Amid the ongoing exchange of barbs between the state and centre over combating Covid-19, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday wrote an open letter to Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankar, accusing the latter of transgressing constitutional norms by his direct attacks on her as well as her ministers and officials.
CM Mamata Banerjee said that she was writing the five-page letter to Jagdeep Dhankhar in response to Governor's Apr 20 letter to her as well as few SMSs and a series of Tweets, where the governor had allegedly criticized the state government over Covid-19 fight-and-management.
"You appear to have forgotten that I am an elected Chief Minister of a proud Indian state and you also seem to have forgotten that you are a nominated Governor," Mamata Banerjee wrote in the letter.
"You may continue to ignore all advice and inputs given by me and my council of ministers (as you appear to have taken upon yourself to do since the day of your appointment), but at least you should not ignore the wise words of Babasaheb Ambedkar in the Constituent Assembly on 31/5/1949," she wrote.
In the letter, Mamata Banerjee also reminded him about the constitutional boundaries of a Governor by using the quotes of Babasaheb Ambedkar and categorical observations of the Sarkaria Commission.
"Your tone, tenor and language, which in the mildest words of extreme moderation, deserve to be characterised as unparliamentary," Banerjee wrote.
"Your holding of press conferences against the state government itself (of which you are Governor!) and your repeated and consistent interference in the administration of my ministries and departments."
"Your expostulation leaves me with no option but to release these letters in the public domain to leave it to the people of this state and of this nation to judge for themselves as to who has done what and who is in breach of elementary norms of constitutional behaviour," Bengal CM wrote to the Governor.
Meanwhile, West Bengal Guv Jagdeep Dhankar said he will share his initial response to CM's letter around 7.45 PM today and a final one tomorrow (Apr 24) at 11 am.
A communication @MamataOfficial has been received.
— Governor West Bengal Jagdeep Dhankhar (@jdhankhar1) April 23, 2020
Outrageously factually wrong and constitutionally infirm.
My initial response will be shared with media around 7.45 PM today.
And a final one tomorrow at 11 am.
People of the state need to know the real picture.
Earlier, a confrontation had raged between the West Bengal government and the Centre over the arrival of a two member Inter-Ministerial Central Teams (ICMTs) for tour of seven districts across the state to take a stock of the Coronavirus situation.
The showdown began after West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee accused the Centre of compromising the structure of federalism by sending the two teams without informing the state.
Banerjee accused the Centre of informing her about the teams' visit to the state hours after the officials had landed in the Kolkata airport.
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