The Left and the Bengal BJP have scoffed at Chief Minister Mamata for suddenly going soft on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and alleged that she was trying to save herself and her nephew Abhishek Banerjee.
Congress spokesperson Supriya Shrinate asked if Mamata was giving a clean chit to the Prime Minister at a time when the entire country was raising questions on the issue of misuse of agencies as that would give rise to doubts on her intentions too. The Opposition cannot play “hide-and-seek” in politics as it has to seek accountability from the Prime Minister on issues of public importance, she said.
The remarks came a day after Mamata sought to insulate Prime Minister Modi from allegations of misuse of Central agencies by the BJP-led Centre against political rivals by saying she did not believe that the PM was behind the alleged excesses of the CBI and the ED.
“I do not know that she is trying to corner Amit Shah-ji while leaving out Modi-ji. I don’t know whether she has decided that Modi-ji is good, I will not comment on her point, but yes, I will definitely say two things. In this Government of rulers sitting in Delhi, nothing moves without the approval of PM Modi. When you give a clean chit to the PM, somewhere you are acquitting him of the charges on which the country is asking questions today,” Supriya added.
BJP MLA Agnimitra Paul said, “Her statements are quite amusing …even a few weeks back she was going all guns blazing against the PM… she said that she will tie him with a rope around his waist and pull him along … but now suddenly her voice has changed … Is it because she has lost her mind or it is because she is afraid of something.”
Another senior party leader said with the ED and CBI investigating the coal, cattle and recruitment scams standing at the doorsteps of her nephew Abhishek, she is trying to save her family members by making sweet remarks for the Prime Minister.
The Chief Minister had on Monday said in the State Assembly that she did not believe that the Prime Minister was responsible for the “malicious raids” being conducted by the ED and CBI adding that a section of BJP central leaders and their Bengal counterparts were issuing orders to the central agency to go after the TMC leaders.
At the end of a massive rally in Kolkata Bengal CPI (M) secretary Md Salim too attacked the Chief Minister for making “friendly remarks” about the Prime Minister. “We had been telling from the very beginning that the there is an element of ‘setting’ (adjustment) between the Chief Minister and Prime Minister … here is the burning example of that setting … or else what explains the Chief Minister’s praise for Modi,” he said, reminding how Mamata had last week praised the RSS saying she did not believe that all men in that organisation were bad.