The acrimony between West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar and the TMC government was on show at the Assembly on Tuesday, 26 November, when he and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee shared the dias for the first time but did not exchange greetings and instead preferred to hit out at each other.
There was, however, no direct exchange of words as Banerjee spoke after the governor left the House.
Dhankhar engaged in a fresh war of words claiming that the post of the constitutional head of the state has been “seriously compromised” as he hit out at Banerjee, who shot back saying that the post is being “grossly misused”.
She also said that Dhankhar is engaging in a spat with her on the direction of the BJP-ruled government at the Centre.
"I am constrained to indicate to all of you the post of the constitutional head of the state has been seriously compromised. This is an unprecedented and challenging situation.... The sequence of events that have taken place bear it out. Such an outrage is unprecedented. I am sure in your deliberations you all will have the occasion to reflect on this and engage in soul searching," the governor said.
He said," .... I will continue to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution and the law and that I will devote myself to the service and well-being of the people of West Bengal. I have worked in that direction and would continue to do so, unmindful of situations that may seek to impede it".
The occasion was the special Assembly session to mark Constitution Day to mark the 70th anniversary of the adoption of Indian Constitution.
Dhankhar also took a dig at West Bengal Speaker Biman Banerjee for inviting him late to the programme.
"I was invited on a short notice, still I accepted the invite though it coincided with the Constitution Day celebrations at the Raj Bhawan," he said.
TMC lawmakers were seen chanting slogans like 'Jai Bangla, Jai Hind' as he was leaving the House after concluding his speech.
‘We Know Where the Orders Come From for Him’
Banerjee, who spoke later, hit out at Dhankhar saying I have had no run ins with any other governor. The governor is a constitutional post. I have never fought with any governor. I dont know why he (Dhankhar) is creating this situation.
"We know where the orders come from for him. I know who has sent him and what's his job, she added.
Banerjee referred to the recent chopper controversy, and said that Dhankhar’s requests for a helicopter were declined due to the rescue and relief operations after Cyclone Bulbul and a central team was touring Bengal to review the affected areas.
"We (the state government) do not own a helicopter. There are states that own private jets but we don't. The chopper was being used by the central team and then he also wanted chopper. We ask for a chopper when there is an emergency ... We don't have any problem giving him a helicopter otherwise, she said.
Commenting on the governor's invite to her for the Constitution Day programme at the Raj Bhawan, Banerjee said she has already written to him expressing her inability to attend it as the assembly would be in session.
"But he (governor) is deliberately speaking in public as if he just wants publicity out of it," she said.
‘Never Had Any Problem With Previous Governors’
Later on while taking to reporters, Banerjee said the post of Governor is "grossly misused" in Bengal.
“No one should forget that the governor’s is a nominated post but the state government is elected. We are not at anyone’s mercy,” she said.
She said all leaders, including the prime minister speak to her when they meet. "But nobody behaves in this way (the way Dhankhar did). We never had any problems with the previous governors. So, it needs to be seen who is responsible for this situation".
The governor and the TMC government have been locked in bitter exchange of words on a number of issues ranging from the seating arrangement for Dhankhar at the Durga Puja carnival to comments on his security detail ever since he rushed to Jadavpur University to "rescue" Union minister Babul Supriyo, who was heckled and manhandled by students.
A tussle had also erupted over the state government's refusal to provide a helicopter to Dhankhar to travel to Farakka in Murshidabad district and Santiniketan in Birbhum district.
Earlier during his address, Governor Dhankhar hailed the Narendra Modi government for its decision to abrogate Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir.
"Significantly Dr B R Ambedkar declined to draft Article 370. India has given favour to abrogation of Article 370 to rule out terrorism. India has given farewell to article 370 that promotes terrorism and separatist ideas," he said.
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