BJP demands President's rule, says Mamata govt responsible for 'complete breakdown of law and order'

The BJP met West Bengal Governor K N Tripathi and demanded that the Centre should immediately impose President's rule as the law and order situation in the state has "completely broken down".
"Today we met the governor and informed him about the grim situation in the state. The state government in collaboration with anti-national elements is directly responsible for the complete breakdown of the law and order situation. We have requested the governor to talk to the central government and send the recommendation for imposition of President's rule in the state," state BJP president Dilip Ghosh told reporters after the meeting.
The BJP's demand follows the communal clashes in North 24 Parganas district and the ongoing turmoil in Darjeeling hills.

It also demanded that all families affected in the riots be compensated by the state government.
The BJP took out a procession from their state party office in central Kolkata during the day demanding immediate arrests of those involved in the riots and restoration of peace in Baduria and Darjeeling Hills where a movement for a separate state of Gorkhaland is on.

Ghosh rubbished allegations by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee that the Centre is not cooperating with the state government. "This is a complete lie. It was the central forces which helped her to come down from the hills when the agitation first started. The Centre has extended all help. In Baduria, the Centre wanted to send more forces but it was the state government which declined," he said.
He accused West Bengal government of pursuing "politics of appeasement" with an eye on the minority votes in the state."The incident at Baduria in North 24 Parganas district is a clear example of appeasement politics. The houses and other property of Hindus were burnt and looted but the police was standing as a mute spectator," Ghosh said. 

Meanwhile, Mamata Banerjee on Saturday held the Government responsible for the recent Baduria and Basirhat violence which has turned the entire state into chaos.

‘The Centre wants to impose President’s rule in the region,’ she said.

Mamata said there would demand for a judicial enquiry into the violence that occurred over a Facebook post.

‘The Centre has a non-cooperative attitude; the border areas are being disturbed with foreign hands having good relations with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP),’ she said, while addressing a press conference here.

She further said that the law would take it own course against those who had planned the incident.

‘The Centre is not cooperating to maintain law and order in the region,’ she said.

Meanwhile, the North 24 Parganas Superintendent of Police (SP) Bhaskar Mukherjee has been removed and C. Sudharkar Rao will take over the post.

Yesterday, the BJP, Left and the Congress delegations were prevented from visiting riot-hit areas in Basirhat by the police.

The West Bengal government has returned an additional 400 paramilitary BSF troops sent for deployment in the riot-hit areas of North 24-Parganas district, Union home ministry sources said today.
The state government has its own security forces like the Eastern Frontier Rifles and was not deploying them, they said.
Instead, it was blaming the central government, the sources said.
Four BSF companies (comprising 100 personnel each) were sent to Basirhat and two day back, four additional companies were also dispatched, but these were returned by the state government, the ministry sources said.

The MHA's response came after West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said the central government has a non- cooperative attitude and the additional four companies were never sent.
Referring to Darjeeling hills which have also witnessed violence, the sources said 11 companies of paramilitary force personnnel were sent by the Centre, including one company consisting of women.

The state government also conveyed to the home ministry that the all-woman company should be withdrawn, they said. The West Bengal government has its own security forces like the Eastern Frontier Rifles and the State Armed Police and both have several battalions, they said. 

However, the state government was not deploying these forces and instead blaming the central government, the sources said.
Communal clashes broke out in Baduria in Basirhat sub- division of the district on Monday following an "objectionable" Facebook post.

The situation in the riot-hit areas was limping back to normal with no incidents of violence being reported in last three days. However, the Army was called out in Darjeeling as violence spread after death of a youth allegedly in police firing. The indefinite shutdown entered its 24th day. The hill parties are demanding a separate Gorkhaland state carved out of West Bengal.