Mayawati accuses Centre of targetting Mamata

The BSP chief asserted that Centre is targetting Mamata Banerjee for her demonetisation move

Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati on Friday dubbed the military deployment in West Bengal as a deliberate move by the Centre to humiliate Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.

Condemning the act, Mayawati said that the ruling dispensation is targeting the West Bengal chief minister as she had raised her voice against the recently launched demonetisation drive.

"This is not correct, our party should strongly condemn the move and the Central government should not do this. The Central government is trying to humiliate Mamata Banerjee as she has been raising her voice against demonetisation," said Mayawati.

"This is unfair to the West Bengal chief minister. This step is a grave attack on the Constitution. One should not politicise the army," he added.

Raising the issue, Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad sought a clarification from the Centre and asked as to why the state's rights are being impinged on.

"It seems out of the way. Army doesn't collect toll? There is no law and order issue in West Bengal for Army to be deployed? The centre must clarify it, in fact the prime minister must clarify as to why state's rights are being impinged on," Azad said

After Opposition allegation, MoS Defence Subhash Ramrao Bhamre said that the information that this House has is "factually incorrect." "Army was in Bengal for a routine exercise," adding that the Opposition raised a ruckus.

Amid Opposition leaders raising slogans against Narendra Modi Government and its "tanashahi" (dictatorship), Deputy Chairman PJ Kurien adjourned the house till 2 pm.

The Trinamool Congress (TMC) alleged that the RS is being mislead by MoS Defence Subhash Bhamre and no conclusive answer in being given by centre on Army deployment.

Hysteria gripped West Bengal on Thursday night after Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee decided not to go home and instead stay put at the state secretariat Nabanna to protest against the "sudden deployment" of the army in the area.

Banerjee camped overnight at her office in the secretariat in Kolkata, objecting to the presence of Army jawans at toll booths, one just 500 metres from where she was.

"Is this a military coup?" Banerjee asked, alleging that the state government had not been informed about what the army said was a routine exercise that it was conducting across eastern states.