KOLKATA, Sep 2: The West Bengal Assembly on Tuesday witnessed chaos as the ruling TMC and opposition BJP clashed over a motion condemning alleged attacks on Bengali-speaking migrants in other states, culminating in the suspension of Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari for the remaining part of this special session for “disrupting proceedings”.
Dubbing the TMC as “agent of Pakistan”, Adhikari alleged he was suspended for protesting against state Education Minister Bratya Basu’s alleged remarks criticising the Indian Army’s dismantling of a TMC protest stage in the city and drawing parallels with the Pakistani army’s brutal crackdown in East Pakistan, now Bangladesh, in 1971.
The dramatic showdown came less than 24 hours after Army officials partially dismantled a TMC protest pandal at the Gandhi statue on Kolkata’s Mayo Road, because the party had overshot the programme’s permission tenure.
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had rushed to the spot on Monday evening, accusing the BJP of “misusing the Army” for “vendetta politics.” Tabling the motion under Rule 169, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay cited recent incidents, including the alleged torture of a migrant worker in BJP-ruled states, to highlight the “persecution faced by Bengalis” outside Bengal. (PTI)
