India News | Atmosphere of Courtesy Between WB Govt and Raj Bhawan Will Change if Guv Does Not Reciprocate : TMC

Kolkata, Feb 14 (PTI) After several months of bonhomie, rough edges appear to be developing in the Raj Bhawan-West Bengal government ties as the ruling TMC on Tuesday said that the atmosphere of courtesy will exist as long as Governor C V Ananda Bose reciprocates it.

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Senior TMC leader Kunal Ghosh said the party, which till now has been full of praise of Bose's attitude of cooperating with the state government, might change its tone depending on the functioning of the occupant of the Raj Bhawan.

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Ghosh's remark comes in the backdrop of Bose relieving his principal secretary Nandini Chakravorty of her duties as a new team is being constituted.

"Those (Centre) who had sent Dhankhar has also sent C V Ananda Bose. Although the method of functioning of the two persons may differ, at the end of the day the source is the same. It is not right to think that they have different objectives.

"As long as C V Ananda Bose maintains courtesy and acts within the rules, we too will reciprocate with courtesy," Ghosh told reporters.

If the Governor tries to criticise the state government against norms, TMC will not stop to give a "befitting reply", he said.

"If the governor tries to criticise or monitor the state against the norm, or if IPS officers from other states are used differently, then both the language and the mood of the response (by the TMC government) will have to change," Ghosh asserted.

Chakravorty was appointed the principal secretary to Governor La Ganesan on August 18, 2022. She held the post when Bose took an oath on November 23, 2022 after replacing Ganesan.

The development to relieve Chakravorty came just a day after Bose in his first statement issued since his appointment in the state said there will be "zero tolerance policy" over corruption.

Bose also said nobody will be allowed to take the law into their hands in the state.

The West Bengal BJP reacted to Ghosh's statement by saying his comment reflects TMC's "zero tolerance" to criticism.

"What does he (Ghosh) mean by saying as long as the governor shows courtesy, it will be reciprocated? As the Governor has recently said something that is not to the liking of TMC, it has started threatening him. It reflects TMC'S zero tolerance to criticism," BJP state spokesperson Samik Bhattacharya said.

Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari (BJP), who has been critical of Bose for his cordial relationship with the TMC government, sought to rub in the salt by saying,"It seems sweets sent by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee did not yield any results."

Bose on Monday met Vice-president Jagdeep Dhankhar in New Delhi.

The relationship between him and the state government sharply contrasts what the state has witnessed during that of Dhankhar's tenure as governor. Dhankhar was Bose's predecessor.

Dhankhar's acrimonious relationship with the state government regularly made it to the headlines. TMC accused him of acting as an "agent of BJP" and Dhankhar alleged that the state government was not functioning as per constitutional norms.

In a departure from the past, Bose shares a very cordial relationship with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, for which he has drawn the ire of the state BJP.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)