KOLKATA: West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday cracked the whip on minister Srikanta Mahata and cautioned him from making controversial remarks against party leaders from the showbiz industry.
She also asked Mahata to apologise, a TMC minister said .
"The chief minister rebuked Mahata for his remarks and asked him not to make controversial remarks in future. He was asked to tender an apology," the senior TMC Minister said.
Mahata, the minister of state for consumer affairs and an influential leader from West Midnapore district, had courted controversy on Sunday by claiming that several Trinamool Congress MLAs and MPs from the showbiz industry have become looters and that the party's top brass is ignoring honest workers.
He was show caused for his statement, which the party top brass said "has harmed the party's image".
Mahata had said that if the TMC MPs and MLAs from the showbiz industry are considered its assets "How long can we be with this party?"
"If there are instances of loot of money, it is advisable for a minister to go to jail. Otherwise, people will point fingers at ministers and label all of us as thieves. Aren't all of us facing similar taunts?" the minister had said.
He was referring to the arrests of senior leaders Partha Chatterjee and Anubrata Mondal by central probe agencies in connection with the school jobs recruitment scam and alleged cattle smuggling respectively.