West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar
KOLKATA: West Bengal governor Jagdeep Dhankhar, on a request by the CBI, sanctioned the prosecution of Firhad Hakim, Subrata Mukherjee, Madan Mitra and Sovan Chatterjee, all of them ministers during the time of the alleged commission of a crime that came to light in the purported Narada sting tapes, a Raj Bhavan official said on Sunday. Honourable governor is the competent authority to accord sanction in terms of law as he happens to be the appointing authority for such ministers in terms of Article 164 of the Constitution, a statement issued by the officer on special duty (communication), Raj Bhavan, said.
The Governor made the announcement by tweeting a release issued by the Raj Bhavan on Sunday.
“Governor accorded sanction for prosecution of Firhad Hakim, Subrata Mukherjee, Madan Mitra & Sovan Chatterjee being appointing authority of Ministers @MamataOfficial under Article 164 & thus competent authority. Media reports that sanction was for being MLA is incorrect,” tweeted Dhankhar.
Governor accorded sanction for prosecution of Firhad Hakim, Subrata Mukherjee, Madan Mitra & Sovan Chatterjee being appointing authority of Ministers @MamataOfficial under Article 164 & thus competent authority
Media reports that sanction was for being MLA is incorrect. pic.twitter.com/vqEg7Cv6OW
The CBI had approached the Governor seeking permission to prosecute the concerned persons in relation to the Narada sting operation case.
The Governor has said he has the authority to sanction prosecution of the four leaders. (FILE)
Kolkata:
West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar - known for his frequent collision with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee - has given his nod to the CBI to prosecute four erstwhile ministers of her government in the Narada tapes scandal.
Two of the former ministers, now facing CBI prosecution, were sworn in on Monday by the Governor himself. Subrata Mukherjee and Firhad Hakim were named in a list of 43 ministers released on Sunday.
The sanction and its timing is raising eyebrows, coming as it does just after Mamata Banerjee s resounding victory in the assembly elections that had turned into a direct fight between her and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and also because Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla is yet to sanction the prosecution of Suvendu Adhikari, a former Trinamool Congress minister who is now a BJP MLA from Nandigram.
The incident comes to light, a few days after senior leaders alleged that many of the BJP party workers have been tortured, thrashed and even raped in West Bengal after the results were announced on May 2.
The social media is overwhelmed with the images and footage of after poll violence in West Bengal. While many visuals show some houses or vehicles on fire, others narrate the horror of violence in the state.
Meanwhile, following various reports on the incidents, the Centre has sought a detailed report from the newly-elected West Bengal government on post-poll violence in the State.
Earlier, PM Narendra Modi also called West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar to enquire about the situation.
Mamata Banerjee took charge as Bengal Chief Minister for a third straight term (AFP)
Kolkata:
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today took a swipe at the centre over sending a team to look into violence in the state after the results of the assembly election were announced last week. The Trinamool Congress, which won the election for a third term, and the BJP have accused each other as behind clashes reported from across the state.
Ms Banerjee, in an allusion to frequent confrontations it often had with the centre in the last few years, asked the BJP-led centre to refrain from sending central teams over matters that may not exist.