KOLKATA: The Congress and the CPI(M), who formed an alliance against the TMC in the Assembly polls, condemned arrests of two ministers and one MLA in Narada sting operation case and raised question -- why two other accused Suvendu Adhikari and Mukul Roy, who are now in BJP fold, were left untouched.
They also accused the saffron camp of practicing "revenge politics" and described the arrests as an attempt to divert people’s focus from the BJP-led central government’s mismanagement to combat Covid-19 pandemic.
"At a time when the country is facing unprecedented crisis triggered by Covid-19 pandemic, the Centre swung into action by arresting TMC’s two ministers, one MLA and another former minister of Bengal ruling party. The time of the action was selected to divert people’s focus on the BJP-led central government’s mismanagement to deal with Covid-19 pandemic. The arrests are politically motivated. BJP should remember that the people of Bengal rejected their ideology in the Assembly elections," said CPI(M)’s state secretary Suryakanta Mishra.
CPI(M)’s Rajya Sabha MP Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharya said the CBI should book Adhikari and Roy as they are also co-accused in this case.
In the video footage released by Narada, Adhikari was seen have received money and IPS officer SMH Mirza was seen saying he was accepting the money on behalf of Roy. Mirza was the only 13 accused in this case who was arrested before the CBI’s action on Monday.
State Congress president Adhir Ranjan Chhowdhury said the arrests of TMC leaders were unfortunate. "The Bengal is battling against the unprecedented surge in Covid-19 infection and the state government imposed stringent lockdown from Sunday. The CBI’s act is nothing but BJP’s politics of revenge. If these ministers can be arrested why BJP’s two heavyweights were left untouched," he said.
TMC MP and spokesperson Saugata Roy described the arrests as a BJP move to avenge its poll debacle in the Assembly elections. "The BJP still cannot accept the verdict that the people of Bengal," he said.