West Bengal assembly passes motion against 'misuse' of central agencies; BJP stages walkout

The West Bengal assembly on Monday passed a motion against the "misuse of central agencies" for targeting the TMC.

The BJP, however, staged a walkout in the House, claiming that presence of its members in the Assembly when the motion was being read out would "tantamount to supporting corruption cases".

The motion was introduced by senior TMC MLA Tapas Roy, under Rule 185 of the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in the West Bengal Legislative Assembly.

Referring to Leader of the Opposition Suvendu Adhikari’s assertion that minister Partha Bhowmik will be put behind bars within a month, Roy said the country, since 2014, has been witnessing rampant misuse of central agencies for harassing political leaders.

Bhowmik had moved a privilege motion against Adhikari.

"We have seen how the leader of opposition threatened the members of the state's ruling party, including ministers, with dire consequences," Roy said.

Speaking on the motion, state minister Chandrima Bhattacharya said the Enforcement Directorate and Central Bureau of Investigation are selectively targeting the leaders and functionaries of the TMC and creating an atmosphere of fear.

"Their only motive is to malign TMC. The BJP cannot fight us politically so they are using central agencies against us," she said.

Later, talking to reporters, BJP chief whip Manoj Tigga said the allegations are baseless.

"We walked out as we think staying there tantamount to supporting what the TMC is saying, which is nothing but a blatant lie," he said.

Several TMC leaders and ministers have been arrested by the central agencies in the recent past for their alleged involvement in scams and corruption cases.