Kolkata: Rebel Trinamool Congress MLA Sabina Yeasmin on Thursday urged the West Bengal government to keep a close watch on the functioning of officials, asserting that elected representatives alone should not be blamed for failures in delivering public services.
Participating in the discussion on the state budget in the Assembly, the Sujapur MLA said the government had undertaken several welfare programmes, but their implementation was often affected by administrative bottlenecks.
"Public representatives should certainly be punished if they are found guilty of wrongdoing. But we can bring true transparency only when we examine every aspect of governance," Yeasmin said.
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She argued that if elected representatives are unable to serve people effectively, the bureaucracy should also be held accountable.
"If a public representative cannot reach the people or deliver services, the bureaucracy is responsible for 70 per cent of that as well. Therefore, I request the government to keep a strict watch not only on elected representatives but also on officials," she said.
Without naming any individual officer or department, Yeasmin said the government's objectives could be jeopardised if corrective measures were not taken.
"If this is not addressed, the dreams and goals of the government may be defeated in the future," she warned.
