Objection to Suvendu's name in HC Gangasagar panel shows autocracy of TMC: BJP

The BJP on Tuesday accused the ruling Trinamool Congress of showing an autocratic attitude by objecting to the presence of Leader of the Opposition Suvendu Adhikari in a committee formed by the Calcutta High Court to monitor compliance of Covid restrictions at Gangasagar Mela in Sagar Island.

BJP state unit spokesperson Samik Bhattacharya told reporters that it was shocking and unfortunate that the leader of the opposition, despite being a people's representative, was not allowed to be a part of a committee that has been set up to ensure the well being of the general public and the advocate general pleaded for his removal from the panel.

The TMC, however, said the high court took the right step as politicians should not be in such a committee.

''What the Trinamool Congress and the state government did today is an attack on the post of the leader of the opposition. It is not only demeaning for the post, but also against the values and principles professed by the founders of the constitution. Today is a sad day for democracy in Bengal,'' Bhattacharya said.

Hearing a PIL seeking to stop this year’s Gangasagar Mela in view of rising Covid-19 cases, the Calcutta High Court had on January 7 formed a committee comprising the leader of the opposition, the state Human Rights Commission chairman and a representative of the state.

Advocate General SN Mookerjee informed the court that the post of the State Human Rights Commission chairman is lying vacant, and inclusion of the Leader of the Opposition will give the panel a political colour.

The court dropped Adhikari from the panel ''to avoid any misapprehension in the mind of the applicants or the state'' and reconstituted it to a two-member committee comprising former Justice Samapti Chatterjee and the member secretary of the West Bengal Legal Services Authority.

The BJP state spokesperson claimed that the TMC government wanted the 'mela' (fair) to be held even amid surging covid cases.

Reacting to the BJP's charges, veteran TMC MP Sukhendu Sekhar Roy said, ''The court has done the right thing. Why should politicians be part of such a committee?'' He, however, said that a doctor could also have been inducted into the committee.

Another senior TMC MP Sougata Roy said, ''The BJP should not have commented on the order of the honourable high court.'' State Congress president Adhir Chowdhury asserted that the TMC-controlled government is determined to hold Gangasagar mela even if that endangers the health of thousands of people.

''If there is any untoward development, the state will just pass the buck to the court,'' he said.