West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee should have resigned over her cabinet member Madan Mitra's arrest in connection with the Saradha scam, CPI-M said on Tuesday but added it did not want Article 356 to be imposed in the state.
"The chief minister should have resigned owning responsibility. Instead she is defending the indefensible," Leader of Opposition Surjya Kanta Mishra told a party rally referring to Transport Minister Madan Mitra's arrest.
Mitra was arrested by CBI, which is probing the Saradha scam, on December 12. Banerjee has rejected Mitra's resignation letter.
"We don't want this government to be uprooted by the use of Article 356. It has to go with the people's mandate," Mishra said adding CPI-M was ready to wait till the 2016 assembly elections. Left Front chairman and CPI(M) state secretary Biman Bose said imposition of Article 356 would only help the ruling TMC to garner sympathy.
"We do not want Article 356 to be imposed, we want the government to function properly instead ... TMC wants the Centre to impose it so that it can claim to be the victim, but we don't want them to take that advantage," he said.
Referring to the Saradha scam, Mishra said "All those who are thieves should be arrested irrespective of their position.
"We believe there are many in TMC who are honest people and believe in democratic norms. But those who have benefitted from chitfunds must be put behind bars and speedy trial should be ensured.
"The chitfund companies have looted more than Rs 60,000 crore from the people of the state. Investors should be paid back by selling their assets," he said.
Referring to the reconversion imbroglio in Uttar Pradesh, Bose alleged that BJP was playing a 'dangerous communal game' and a movement had to be initiated for maintaining communal harmony.
"While the Centre is indulging in aggressive communalism, the state government here is peddling soft communalism ... By doing this BJP is trying to corner the Hindu votes, while TMC is attempting to polarise the Muslim votes," Bose said.
Later, a six-member delegation led by former Lok Sabha MP Tarit Topdar met the state Parliamentary Affairs minister Partha Chatterjee at the Assembly. CPI(M) leaders and supporters also held a token march to Nabanna, the state secretariat, and dispersed when they were blocked by the police.
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