West Bengal Guv refutes TMC's OSD appointment charge; Mahua Moitra insists 'he has lied'

On Monday, West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar dubbed TMC MP Mahua Moitra's charge that he appointed 6 relatives and acquaintances as his Officers on Special Duty as a "distraction strategy". While Dhankhar asserted that Krishnanagar MP's statement is "factually wrong", he stated that none of the OSDs are a part of "close family". According to him, this was a tactic to divert attention from the "alarming" law and order situation in the state. 

Moreover, the Governor affirmed his commitment to serve the people of WB and vindicate his oath of office under Article 159 of the Constitution. A day earlier, he alleged that people are suffering targeted violence for 'daring' to vote against the ruling dispensation and asked the Chief Secretary to brief him on all the steps to contain the post-poll violence. Meanwhile, Moitra did not hold back and accused him of lying on the OSD appointment issue. 

Speaking to ANI, TMC MP Mahua Moitra retorted, "He is occupying the Governor's post. Does it suit him to reply to my tweet like this? He should explain how these three persons entered Raj Bhavan. An OSD to the Governor is not an ordinary post. It is a heavy-weight post. Who is the Dikshit, Shekhawat and Dhankhar listed as OSDs on the Raj Bhavan website? You (Dhankhar) have lied that you have no connection with them."

Governor-CM tussle

In the last few years, Jagdeep Dhankhar has been at loggerheads with the Mamata Banerjee-led government. While the Governor has stressed that he is exercising his constitutional duties, TMC has accused him of interference and sought his ouster on multiple occasions. The latest flashpoint has been the post-poll violence in the state in which at least 16 persons lost their lives. Right from the day of Banerjee's oath-taking ceremony, Dhankhar has been vocal in his criticism of the state government's handling of the law and order situation.

For instance, he maintained that the TMC supremo cannot shirk responsibility as the Model Code of Conduct was revoked on May 3 itself. Thereafter, he defied the CM's opposition and visited violence-hit areas in Cooch Behar and areas of Assam where people from the state are camping. Moitra's dig at the Governor was based on his statement issued on Sunday in which he claimed, "People are in mortal fear of police and that in turn is at the feet of ruling party rogue elements. Most unfortunate that state functionaries are not even recognising this malaise much less take steps to contain it".