Mamata skips I-Day event at Raj Bhavan, WB Guv shares pic of empty seat

Kolkata: Hours after criticising West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee for skipping a tea party at Raj Bhavan on Independence Day, Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar expressed his displeasure again on Sunday.

Banerjee had called on Dhankhar at Raj Bhawan in the morning along with senior bureaucrats and police officials soon after attending the Independence Day parade at the Red Road, which she later termed as a “courtesy visit”. The chief minister had also said she will not be able to attend the Raj Bhavan programme scheduled to be held in the evening.

After posting four tweets along with photographs and videos from the event late on Saturday, a miffed Dhankar took to Twitter again on Sunday morning.

“Glimpses of ‘At Home’ reception hosted on Independence Day at Raj Bhavan. CM and executive @MamataOfficial set bad precedent by not attending. Another painful instance of distancing from Constitution. Law & order further nosedived with rise in political violence & killing,” the governor tweeted.

He also said the Raj Bhavan “At Home was well attended” and wrote about the guest list which included Calcutta High Court chief justice TN Radhakrishnan, justice Sanjib Banerjee, justice Indra Prasanna Mukerji, Congress’ Abdul Mannan, left leader Sujan Chakraborty, top brass from defence and para military and dignitaries among others.

In his earlier tweets, the governor said Banerjee’s absence from the event had “stunned” him. “Absence of CM and officials @MamataOfficial on occasion of Independence Day celebration at Raj Bhawan has like many startled and stunned me. We need to rise to occasion as respect to freedom fighters who gave their all to secure for us freedom and democracy. I am at a loss for words,” Dhakhar had tweeted after the party.

“The vacant seat meant for CM @MamataOfficial at celebration of Independence Day at Raj Bhawan speaks volumes -has created unwholesome situation that is not in sync with rich culture and ethos of WB.

“There is just no rationale for this unbecoming stance,” Dhankhar tweeted along with a photograph where he was seen sitting next to the vacant chair meant for Banerjee.

He said that the traditional “At Home” programme was organised keeping in mind the Covid-19 protocol of maintaining social distance and less than 35 people were invited. “...It would have been befitting if CM and officials @MamataOfficial had participated. Their action not in sync with sanctity of occasion,” he tweeted.

The Banerjee-led government and the governor have crossed swords on several occasions before this.