KOLKATA: The BJP legislature party on Friday staged a walkout from the state assembly demanding a statement from West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee in the house on the Birbhum killings where eight people were burnt alive earlier this week.
The BJP legislators led by party chief whip Manoj Tigga demanded that Banerjee should come to the house and make a statement on the Birbhum killings. The legislators invaded the house's well while demanding her statement.
Speaker Biman Banerjee tried to pacify the BJP MLAs by saying the Chief Minister's statement was already in newspapers following her visit to the village on Thursday.
However, the BJP Legislative party continued to raise slogans and staged a noisy walkout from the assembly.
They also staged a protest at the portico of the assembly, holding placards that had 'Manush mara sarkar, aar nei dorkar' (we do not want this government which kills people) written on them.
"We have staged a walkout as the Chief Minister, despite the assembly being in session, has not come up with a statement in the house. She is not facing the house as her party is behind the carnage," Tigga told reporters.
State parliamentary affairs minister Partha Chatterjee however, slammed the opposition BJP for trying to create disturbances in the house. "The BJP has made it a habit to create unrest in the house regularly. They are not allowing the house to function properly," he said.
The BJP MLAs had staged a walkout in the Assembly on Thursday, too, after the speaker refused to grant time for a discussion on the recent Birbhum killings.
Taking a tough stance, Banerjee Thursday said suspects of the Rampurhat killings will have to be hunted down and arrested unless they surrender and asserted that police would ensure the strictest punishment for the culprits.
Since then the Calcutta High Court in a ruling has transferred the investigation into the killings to the Central BUreau of Investigations (CBI).