Kolkata, Oct 30 (PTI) Taking a dig at the ruling TMC over the arrests of its ministers in corruption cases, the BJP on Monday suggested that the state of West Bengal may be on the brink of a constitutional crisis, which could necessitate the intervention of the central government to restore order.
The remark came in the backdrop of the arrest of TMC minister Jyotipriya Mallick last week in a money laundering case linked to an alleged multi-crore ration distribution scandal in the state.
“The day is not far when the entire cabinet of the West Bengal government will be behind bars. First, (minister) Partha Chatterjee was arrested in the school jobs scam, followed by the arrest of three other MLAs, and now Jyotipriya Mallick. This is leading to a constitutional crisis in West Bengal,” BJP state president Sukanta Majumdar said.
“If this situation persists and a constitutional crisis emerges, the central government will have no choice but to intervene to restore the situation. Such lawlessness cannot be allowed to continue,” he said.
The BJP leader’s comments elicited a sharp response from the TMC, which asserted that the BJP should abandon the hope of gaining control over the state through clandestine means.
“The BJP, after failing to secure victory in the 2021 assembly polls, has been employing various tactics to disrupt the state government, such as harassing our party leaders and withholding due funds. Its dream of coming to power in the state through covert means will remain unfulfilled,” TMC spokesperson Kunal Ghosh said.
Before Mallick, another senior minister Partha Chatterjee was arrested by the ED in a case related to a school job scam. Chatterjee was removed from the cabinet following his arrest.
Over the past year, central agencies have also arrested two other MLAs and the TMC’s Birbhum district president Anubrata Mondal in relation to school job scams and cattle smuggling cases. PTI PNT NN
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