Centre spars with Mamata in bid to turn Bengal babus into stool pigeons
Published : Dec 23, 2020, 7:02 am IST
Updated : Dec 23, 2020, 7:02 am IST
Apparently, there is little the Centre can do against civil service officers who are posted under the state government
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The battle for the West Bengal Assembly elections looms ahead but skirmishes have already started. After the attack on BJP president J.P. Nadda’s convoy in the state, the Centre retaliated against the Trinamul government by recalling three IPS officers from the state on Central deputation. Further, to perhaps underline the “message”, the ministry of home affairs summoned state chief secretary Alapan Bandopadhyay and director general of police Virendra to Delhi to explain the law and order situation in Bengal.
Stool pigeons in a skirmish
The battle for the West Bengal assembly elections looms ahead but skirmishes have already started. After the attack on BJP president JP Nadda’s convoy in the state, the Centre retaliated against the TMC government by recalling three IPS officers from the state on Central deputation. Further, to perhaps underline the “message”, the Ministry of Home Affairs summoned state Chief Secretary Alapan Bandopadhyay and Director General of Police Virendra to Delhi to explain the law and order situation in Bengal.
A defiant Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee refused to comply with the summons. Also, she declined the Centre’s demand to send the three IPS officers – Bholanath Pandey, Rajeev Mishra and Praveen Kumar Tripathi – on deputation saying there was a dearth of good officers in the state, and the state could not spare the three officers.