Page 37 - Mamata Banerjee

Anurag Thakur condemns attack on media freedom amid Sandeshkhali incident

The stifling of freedom of expression in West Bengal is unfortunate and amounts to the murder of democracy; the TMC government is flouting constitutional norms, he added

Mamata writes to PM, questions govt's intention behind Aadhaar deactivation

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee announced that her government would provide alternative identification cards to people whose Aadhaar cards have been deactivated

WB govt suppressing voice of women in Sandeshkhali: NCW chief Rekha Sharma

National Commission for Women (NCW) chairperson Rekha Sharma on Monday accused the West Bengal government of suppressing the voice of a large number of women in Sandeshkhali where protests were held against alleged atrocities by ruling TMC leaders. During the day, she led a delegation of the commission to the area and said her visit was to instill confidence in women there so that many of them come out and start speaking their mind. The NCW chairperson alleged that the Mamata Banerjee government was trying to "suppress the voice of women so that the truth would not come out". "I am in Sandeshkhali for the entire day to hear from women. But the culprit must be arrested. Once (Shajahan) Shiekh is arrested, I believe more women will come out with their complaints. We have to instill confidence in them. I will talk to the police," Sharma told reporters soon after reaching the area. A large number of women in Sandeshkhali in North 24 Parganas district had accused Trinamool Congress ...

Sandeskhali incident: SC stays LS panel action against Bengal officials

Sandeshkhali: The Lok Sabha committee, on February 15, had issued a summon to the senior officials in the matter, asking them to appear before the panel today at 10:30 am

Mamata accuses BJP of instigating turmoil in Sandeshkhali, party hits back

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Sunday pointed fingers at the BJP for instigating the turmoil in Sandeshkhali, eliciting a swift rebuttal from the BJP, which in turn accused the TMC and the state government of complicity in crimes against women. As the situation in Sandeshkhali in North 24 Parganas, gradually returns to normalcy following a week of protests alleging atrocities on villagers and sexual harassment of women by local Trinamool Congress leaders, a TMC delegation including three ministers, visited the area. They pledged zero tolerance against any wrongdoing while questioning the actions of BJP-led governments in states facing similar allegations. Meanwhile, Sukanta Majumdar, West Bengal BJP president, announced that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to address a women's rally in Barasat, located in the North 24 Parganas district of West Bengal, on March 7. Addressing a public distribution program in Suri, Banerjee asserted her initiative in directing

Bandhan Bank authorised to collect revenues on behalf of West Bengal govt

Private lender Bandhan Bank on Saturday said that it has been authorised by the West Bengal government to collect tax and non-tax receipts on its behalf. The mandate will enable the bank to collect revenues through the Government Receipt Portal System (GRIPS). By virtue of this mandate, people will be able to pay various taxes like property tax, motor vehicle tax and professional tax using this portal, the lender said. The bank will soon be integrating itself with the West Bengal government to operationalise the payment collection process. Debraj Saha, head-government business, Bandhan Bank said West Bengal is among the top three markets for Bandhan Bank. The bank has over 1,700 transaction outlets in the state, he said. GRIPS is an online internet-based platform for making various tax and non-tax payments to the West Bengal government.

Sandeshkhali violence: Mayawati urges Bengal govt to punish culprits

Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) supremo Mayawati on Friday urged the Mamata Banerjee government to take 'strict action against the culprits

Sandeshkhali violence: NCSC delegation submits report to Prez Murmu

A delegation of the National Commission for Scheduled Castes (NCSC) which visited West Bengal's Sandeshkhali to probe alleged harassment of women by TMC supporters has submitted its report to President Droupadi Murmu, officials said on Friday. A large number of women in Sandeshkhali have claimed that TMC leader Shajahan Sheikh and his supporters captured swathes of land by force and also sexually harassed them. They are demanding the immediate arrest of Sheikh, who has been absconding since an Enforcement Directorate (ED) team that raided his house in connection with an alleged ration scam was attacked by a mob last month. The NCSC delegation visited Sandeshkhali on Thursday and submitted its report to the President after returning to Delhi, the officials said.

BJP, Cong teams to visit West Bengal's violence-hit Sandeshkhali today

West Bengal's Sandeshkhali, which has been rocked by protests over alleged atrocities on villagers by TMC leaders, continued to remain tense on Friday even as a BJP central team and a Congress delegation are scheduled to visit the area during the day. The police have been patrolling the area and have put up barricades to stop the visit of political leaders to the area, apprehending that it might worsen the situation. Six BJP MPs, including five women, are scheduled to visit Sandeshkhali in North 24 Parganas district this afternoon and they alleged that the law and order there was "non-existent". BJP president J P Nadda has constituted the six-member committee of party MPs to visit Sandeshkhali where women have been protesting against alleged atrocities by local TMC leaders. Union ministers Pratima Bhoumik, Annapurna Devi, who is the committee's convener, Sunita Duggal, Kavita Patidar, Sangeeta Yadav and Brij Lal, a former Uttar Pradesh DGP, are members of the panel. "We hope the .

Sandeshkhali violence case: PIL filed in SC seeks court-monitored probe

A PIL was filed in the Supreme Court seeking a court-monitored CBI or SIT probe into the violence in West Bengal's Sandeshkhali village. The plea filed by lawyer Alakh Alok Srivastava also seeks compensation for victims of the Sandeshkhali violence and action against officials of the West Bengal Police for alleged dereliction of duty. The plea also seeks transfer of the probe and subsequent trial outside West Bengal. Besides it seeks an inquiry by a three-judge committee as done in the Manipur violence case. Sandeshkhali, a village in North 24 Parganas district of West Bengal, has been witnessing protests over allegations of sexual abuse of women by a local TMC leader. Several women in the region have accused the local Trinamool Congress strongman Shajahan Sheikh and his supporters of land-grab and sexually assaulting them under coercion. Shajahan has been absconding after a mob, allegedly affiliated to him, attacked Enforcement Directorate officials who has gone to search his ..

TMC MP Mimi Chakraborty resigns from Lok Sabha, says 'politics not for me'

Announcing her resignation from the Lok Sabha, Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP, Mimi Chakraborty, on Thursday said "politics is not for me."Mimi Chakraborty said, "Politics is not for me. You have to promote someone here (in politics) if you are helping someone...Besides being a politician, I also work as an actor. I have equal responsibilities. If you join politics, you are criticised whether you work or not. I spoke with Mamata Banerjee regarding the issues I had. I wanted to tell her about my resignation from a party that gave me an opportunity to go ahead. I had also told her in 2022 about my resignation from the post of an MP. She had rejected it at that time. I will complete the further process after whatever she says."She further said that she was facing a lot of hurdles in giving service to her constituency."I have faced several hurdles in serving the people. I have given my resignation two days ago. CM Mamata Banerjee has not accepted my resignation. I have never spoken ill ...

'Politics not for me': Trinamool leader Mimi Chakraborty resigns as MP

Mimi Chakraborty has handed over her resignation to Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee

Sandeshkhali incident: 17 arrested, won't allow injustice, says CM Mamata

Sandeshkhali is at the centre of a political storm for the past one month. TMC leader Shajahan Sheikh and his followers have been accused by several women of sexual misconduct, triggering protests

'There's RSS base in Sandeshkhali', says Mamata Banerjee amid ongoing row

Sandeshkhali has hit the headlines after a section of women there accused TMC leader Sheikh Shahjahan's aides of sexual harassment

Six-member BJP delegation to visit violence-hit Sandeshkhali in West Bengal

BJP president J P Nadda has constituted a six-member committee of party MPs, five of them being women, who will on Friday visit West Bengal's Sandeshkhali which has been rocked by protests over allegations of sexual assault of women by TMC supporters. Several women in the region have accused the local Trinamool Congress strongman Shajahan Sheikh and his supporters of land-grab and sexually assaulting them under coercion. Shajahan has been absconding after a mob, allegedly affiliated to him, attacked Enforcement Directorate officials who has gone to search his premises in connection with a corruption case. Union ministers Pratima Bhoumik, Annapurna Devi, who is the committee's convener, Sunita Duggal, Kavita Patidar, Sangeeta Yadav and Brij Lal, a former Uttar Pradesh DGP, are part of the committee, a statement from the BJP said. Party sources said they will visit Sandeshkhali on Friday. The party said the incidents of sexual exploitation and violence against women are heart-rendin

Mamata 'mute spectator' to violence against women in West Bengal: BJP

The BJP on Wednesday charged that 'jungle raj' prevailed in West Bengal and demanded resignation of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee after the state was rocked by protests and clashes over the claims of sexual harassment of women in the state's Sandeshkhali area. Addressing a press conference here, BJP national spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia claimed there is "complete anarchy and lawlessness" in West Bengal under the TMC rule with Chief Minister Banerjee allegedly providing protection to her party goons who allegedly raped and exploited tribal women in Sandeshkhali. "There is jungle raj in West Bengal. Our sisters who belong to the scheduled tribes are being raped and assaulted by the TMC goons and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is a mute spectator," he charged. Bhatia said it is clear to every citizen that the rule of law doesn't exist in West Bengal. "Rather it is the law of anarchic ruler Mamata Banerjee which prevails there," he said. Banerjee has no right to remain in the post and

Police cordoned off my lodge, stopped me from visiting Sandeshkhali: BJP

West Bengal BJP president Sukanta Majumdar on Thursday alleged that the state police have cordoned off the lodge where he has put up in Taki area to prevent him from heading towards unrest-hit Sandeshkhali in North 24 Parganas district. Majumdar said he was scheduled to visit Sandeshkhali this afternoon to meet the agitators. "After yesterday's protests, I decided to stay at a lodge in Taki so that I could easily visit Sandeshkhali from here. But since this morning, police have blocked the entrance of the lodge and are not allowing me to move out," he told PTI. Majumdar claimed he has been put under "house arrest", a claim denied by the police. A huge police contingent, equipped with riot gear, was seen deployed outside the lodge. Sandeshkhali is around 35 km from Taki. Reacting to the development, TMC spokesperson Kunal Ghosh accused the BJP of trying to "vitiate the atmosphere". "The allegations are baseless. The BJP is trying to vitiate the atmosphere of the area. They want t

TMC names journalist Sagarika Ghose, Sushmita Dev, two others for RS polls

The Trinamool Congress (TMC) on Sunday announced the names of journalist Sagarika Ghose, party leader Sushmita Dev and two others for the upcoming Rajya Sabha polls from the state. Elections to the five Rajya Sabha seats from West Bengal will be held on February 27. "We are pleased to announce the candidature of @sagarikaghose, @SushmitaDevAITC, @MdNadimulHaque6 and Mamata Bala Thakur for the forthcoming Rajya Sabha elections", the party posted on X. "We extend our heartfelt wishes to them and may they work towards upholding Trinamool's enduring legacy of indomitable spirit and advocacy for the rights of every Indian", it said. While Nadimul Haque, a two-time Rajya Sabha MP, finds himself back in the limelight, the decision not to renominate three sitting MPs Subhasish Chakraborty, Abir Biswas, and Santanu Sen marks a notable shift in the party's strategy. Ghose, a renowned journalist, is yet to officially join the TMC. Former Congress leader Dev, who had joined the TMC in 2021

Switching sides won't impact INDIA; Mamata still part of alliance: Pilot

Amid some INDIA bloc constituents switching sides to the NDA, Congress leader Sachin Pilot on Sunday said the opposition alliance is "strong" and the BJP is attempting a "frantic rejig" of the political landscape as it is worried over the collective strength of the coalition. In an interview with PTI, Pilot also said West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC chief Mamata Banerjee is very much part of the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA), and expressed confidence that a way forward will be found in seat-sharing talks with her party. He also said the BJP talking about 370 seats for itself and 400-plus for the NDA was more of "bravado and rhetoric" than a practical assessment on the ground. As the Rahul Gandhi-led Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra travels through Chhattisgarh, the AICC general secretary in-charge of the state dismissed suggestions that the yatra was adversely affecting the poll preparations of the party and asserted that talks for seat-sharing with allies were ..

Govt making mockery of Parliament: Trinamool leader Derek O'Brien

Trinamool Congress leader Derek O'Brien on Thursday accused the government of making a "mockery" of Parliament by extending the ongoing session by one day. He said the government is extending the session by a day, while eight Parliament sessions were in a row cut short. "Hypocrisy of the Narendra Modi government. Make a full mockery of Parliament and then extend last session by one day!" O'Brien said in a post on X. "Between 2020-2022, 8 sessions in a row cut short. Lowest number of sittings ever for a full 5-year Lok Sabha term," he said. "In 8 years, no 267 notice from Opposition allowed for discussion in Rajya Sabha," he said. Rule 267 of the Rajya Sabha rule book allows for suspension of day's business to debate the issue suggested by a Member. The Budget session of Parliament has been extended by a day till February 10, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla announced on Wednesday. The session, which began on January 31, was otherwise slated to end on February 9.