West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari criticized his predecessor Mamata Banerjee and said he was not a “weak” and “cowardly” chief minister like her. While making these statements, Adhikari sought to warn elected officials against trying to incite communal tensions.
Without mentioning his name directly, Adhikari referred to Aam Janata Party chief Unnayan Humayun Kabir, an MLA who recently made certain “inflammatory” statements, news agency PTI reported.
Adhikari said that although Mamata was “weak” and “cowardly”, he would not tolerate such statements and “irresponsible actions”.
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“Make no mistake, I am not a weak and cowardly Prime Minister like Mamata Banerjee. I will not tolerate reckless comments from elected representatives. I have asked the local MLA to choose his words carefully, keeping in mind the country’s constitution,” Adhikari said.
He said this during a rally in Reginagar in Bengal’s Murshidabad district on Friday, which will witness bypolls. The schedule for Rejinagar bypoll is not over yet. However, Adhikari gave a timeline and said it could happen in the next 30-45 days.
While making an appeal to the councillors, Adhikari said that if the BJP candidate is voted to power, they will “start developing” there “whatever demands the voters here may make against the Hindu-Muslim politics that has been practiced for so long in this region”.
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“It’s time to teach a lesson”
Adhikari also attacked the previous Trinamool Congress government led by Mamata. He said the region had to endure suffering due to violence fueled by the previous government under the guise of protests over issues like CAA-NRC and the Waqf Act.
This is not the first time Adhikari has publicly attacked Kabir. Also on June 29, the chief minister said during the budget session of the state assembly that it was time to teach a “lesson” to the Nowda MLA.
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“I will not allow you (Kabir) to make such reckless and unrestrained public statements again. Not only will I make him withdraw his statements, I will also ensure that he thinks several times before making such statements. I assure this House that this will be the last time he makes such comments in public,” Adhikari said.
This came after Adhikari accused Kabir of making provocative statements to divide people ahead of the by-elections in Reginagar. Kabir’s son is expected to contest the by-election from the seat after it was vacated by the MLA. Kabir won the Nooda seat, which he also retained.
Besides Reginagar, Nandigram will also witness a bypoll after Adhikari vacated the seat and retained Bhabanipur, where he defeated Banerjee.
(With inputs from PTI)
