West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. File,
| Photo Credit: PTI
Condemning the arrest of former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister and Telugu Desam Party (TDP) supremo N. Chandrababu Naidu, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on September 11 said that her nephew and Trinamool Congress (TMC) general secretary Abhishek Banerjee was being summoned by Central agencies because of political vendetta, which would boomerang once the political situation changed.
“I did not like the arrest of Chandrababu Naidu. If someone is at fault, talk to him and investigate him. But one should not do anything vindictively, which may become a boomerang,” the Chief Minister said. Mr. Naidu, the TDP’s national president, was arrested by the Andhra Pradesh Criminal Investigation Department (CID) on September 9 for his alleged complicity in a multi-crore ‘skill development scam’.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has summoned Mr. Abhishek Banerjee to appear before the agency in connection with the recruitment scam on September 13. Ms. Mamata Banerjee emphasised that the summons to Mr. Abhishek Banerjee were part of political vendetta. “Abhishek Banerjee is being harassed unnecessarily. There is no evidence against him. They want to disturb the young generation,” she said.
The Trinamool chairperson said that in a democracy, some parties in the Opposition were able to adjust and some were unable to, but political vendetta meant that when the Opposition party came to power, it would also target leaders of the other party.
The Chief Minister said that her government had never targeted the Ministers and the Chief Minister of the erstwhile Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M)-led Left Front government.
Meanwhile, sources in the TMC said that Mr. Abhishek Banerjee was likely to appear before ED on September 13. His summons are for very day on which the Opposition INDIA bloc’s coordination committee is scheduled to meet in Delhi. Mr. Banerjee is a member of the committee and was scheduled to attend the meeting.
Speaking about the party’s scheduled protest in New Delhi on Gandhi Jayanti against the non-payment of Mahatma Gandhi Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) wages to workers, the CM said that if permission to protest there on Mahatma Gandhi’s birth anniversary was denied, her party leaders would pray at Rajghat. “Delhi police is not our enemy, but they will not be able to give us permission to protest at Rajghat as that will be a political call… However, we can still go there to pray. That is always permissible,” Ms. Banerjee said.
To visit Spain
The Chief Minister also announced that she will be embarking on a visit to Dubai and Spain on Tuesday to seek investments for West Bengal. “I am going abroad after five years. No permission was given for foreign travel earlier, though I had several invitations,” Ms. Banerjee said.
Asked about the confidential letters sent by the Raj Bhavan to her office following the recent stand-offs, Ms. Banerjee said that the Governor had sent “best wishes for the upcoming foreign trip”.