Odisha’s ruling BJP strongly criticized West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee for blaming the BJP and Bajrang Dal for the recent violence in Cuttack. The state BJP urged her to focus on improving the law and order situation in her own state instead of interfering in affairs beyond her territory.
On Thursday, Law Minister Prithiviraj Harichandan also accused Banerjee of attempting to incite people just as the situation in Cuttack had stabilized.
The violence, which stemmed from a Durga idol immersion procession, led to clashes on Saturday and Sunday, injuring 31 people, including 10 police personnel, and damaging numerous shops. The Odisha administration responded by imposing prohibitory orders and suspending internet services for a total of 48 hours to restore calm.
Odisha BJP president Manmohan Samal refrained from making direct remarks about Banerjee but noted that the issues in West Bengal are evident to everyone, implying she should address those.
“It is not proper to comment on Mamata Banerjee. Everyone sees what is happening in Bengal. Odisha is a peaceful state. She should get more information on what is happening in Bengal,” Samal said.
On the other hand, Harichandan claimed that the law and order in West Bengal is in complete disarray, and Banerjee needs to concentrate on improving that, claimed Harichandan.
“The West Bengal CM is trying to provoke people when the situation has calmed down due to proper intervention of the Odisha government. Instead of commenting on Odisha, Mamata should try and improve the situation in her own state,” the law minister said.
Asserting that the violence in Cutack was an aberration and the city is as calm as before, he claimed that the people of Odisha have faith in their government.
“Mamata has a habit of going against Odisha, be it our culture or literature,” Harichandan said.
Though the minister did not elaborate on this, he was apparently alluding to the establishment of a ‘Jagannath Dham’ in the coastal town of Digha, with the help of the West Bengal government.
Food Supplies and Consumer Welfare Minister KC Patra dismissed the Bengal Chief Minister’s claims as “nonsense,” arguing that she lacks knowledge about Cuttack and is responsible for creating unrest in West Bengal.
“Sometimes she herself doesn’t know what she says. What does she know about Cuttack? It is she who is creating riots in West Bengal,” Patra claimed.
What’s Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee’s allegations
Speaking to reporters in Kolkata on Wednesday, Banerjee had said, “Cuttack is burning today. See how attacks are made, how a communal riot is created. The BJP itself created it. Bajrang Dal also. I am sorry to say that these people will finish the country.”
In response to the communal tension, Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi had earlier claimed that “motivated groups” were attempting to ruin the image of the “peaceful state” following the imposition of the first curfew in Cuttack in 34 years and the first-ever internet suspension.
