Union Min Babul Supriyo slams Mamata after Visva-Bharati VC seeks Central security

Union Minister Babul Supriyo on Wednesday came down heavily on West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee after Visva-Bharati University Vice-Chancellor sought from the Centre to permanently deploy Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) personnel on its campus.

Speaking to ANI, Supriyo accused the Trinamool Congress government of making every institution in West Bengal its "political playfield".

"The TMC under Mamata Banerjee has planned to make every institution in West Bengal, their political playfield and that too in a violent manner," he said in response to a query regarding Visva-Bharati VC Bidyut Chakrabarty's request to Union HRD Ministry to deploy the central forces in the campus.

 

He said that it is again in Bengal that a university campus was facing a similar kind of threat that the governor of the state faced recently, following which, he was given central security.

He claimed that this shows that Banerjee has created "end number of examples to insult people" in such positions.

The Union Minister recalled an incident when he was gheraoed and confronted by Jadavpur University students and said that the Trinamool goons did not even spare West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankar, who was held hostage in a car by protesting students while trying to leave the campus.

"Without going into my personal story of Jadavpur University, I would say how the security of the Governor was compromised. We were held hostage in the governor's car for hours. This was one of the reasons why Central forces were deployed for security of the governor," he said.

The BJP leader said that deployment of central forces for the security of a governor was unprecedented and a "black blot and shame" on Banerjee government, which is in charge of the law and order situation in the state.

"The people of West Bengal has taught a lesson to Trinamool Congress in 2019. They have been reduced to half. If you go through the tagline '19 me half-20 me saaf' used in West Bengal, the ruling party will be routed in next elections. Appeasement politics has become USP of Mamata Banerjee," he said.

Citing incidents of confrontation between the university administration and students and staff, Chakrabarty has made a request to the Union HRD Ministry for the deployment of central forces in the university campus.