Jaitley slams Mamata govt for halting 'BJP's Rath Yatra'

Hours after the Calcutta High Court granted permission to BJP for holding 'Rath Yatra in West Bengal', Union Minister and BJP leader Arun Jaitley hit out at Mamata Banerjee-led government for halting the yatra in the state asserting that "if any NDA or BJP government had stopped an opposition programme, it would have been called an undeclared emergency."

Jaitley tweeted, "Why are Human Rights activists and opposition parties silent on denial of a right to a political party to organise its' programme in West Bengal."

"If any NDA/BJP Government had stopped an opposition Programme, it would have been called an "Undeclared Emergency". Why Silence now?" he added.

Meanwhile, BJP national general secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya welcomed the high court's decision terming it a tight slap on the face of "tyranny".

"We welcome this decision and we had trust on the judiciary that we will get justice. This decision is a slap on the face of tyranny. We haven't decided anything but I can assure that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and party chief Amit Shah will join the yatra," Vijayvargiya said.

Earlier today, the Calcutta High Court allowed the BJP to proceed with its Rath Yatra in West Bengal which is perceived as a major setback to the Mamata Banerjee government. The state had refused permission for the proposed 'yatra' citing intelligence reports of possible communal violence in areas where the BJP has planned the rallies.