West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar on Thursday urged Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to end the agitation against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) at Kolkata’s Park Circus.
While protests at Delhi’s Shaheen Bagh have been called off due to the rapidly spreading coronavirus, demonstrators at Park Circus in Kolkata continued with their agitation.
The governor’s appeal came after Banerjee hit the streets to monitor hospitals and local markets in the capital city the last two days. She was seen clearing hospital beds that were occupied by patients who could be treated later. Later, she was seen at a market place guiding people, who were collecting food items, to maintain the distance.
West Bengal BJP President Dilip Ghosh said that Banerjee was playing politics during a crisis.
“She is a chief minister. Is it her job or the job of security personnel and the concerned authorities? It is a political stunt. She must stop this,” Ghosh said.
While Trinamool Congress leaders shared pictures and videos on social media, calling Banerjee the pride of Bengal, Governor Dhankar has called for “pulling down antenna of politics”. He said that she went too far this time and asked the chief minister to take “decisive steps” to withdraw protests at Park Circus.
Mamata Banerjee marking places to encourage social distancing | Sourced from CM Office
“An end to indefinite sit-in-demonstration at Park Circus and Kacchi Sadak (in North Kolkata) should have been ensured in view of the advisories and containing COVID-19. In this regard, I have invited attention of chief minister,” the governor said on Thursday.
Other opposition parties, however, have maintained a stoic silence at this time while CPI(M)’s politburo member Surya Kanta Mishra has asked Banerjee and others to rise above politics in this hour of crisis, reminding the chief minister to follow the footsteps of Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.
“Kerala should be the yardstick for others to deal with COVID-19,” said Mishra, who is also a chest and respiratory specialist.
The TMC leader has also written to 18 chief ministers of India asking them to provide food and shelter to stranded Bengalis in their states. She also released the letter she wrote to Uddhav Thackeray, chief minister of Maharashtra, the state with the most number of positive cases of COVID-19.
