The Trinamool Congress (TMC) on Thursday launched its most scathing attack yet on West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar, with party MP Kalyan Banerjee demanding the Governor’s prosecution.
“The Governor is speaking on behalf of the accused and obstructing the investigation,” Mr. Banerjee said at the TMC party headquarters. While the TMC has so far accused the Governor of being a spokesperson for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the allegations made on Thursday are quite serious in nature.
“The Governor has secret links with BJP criminals and other criminals. He is targeting the Chief Minister and preventing investigation. Those who obstruct the criminal investigation can be prosecuted under Sections 186 and 189 of the Indian Penal Code. So, I will request the Kolkata Police to file a case against him for it,” Mr. Banerjee, an advocate, and chief whip of the party in the Lok Sabha, said.
Referring to Mr. Dhankhar’s tweets directed against a senior police officer on November 25, the Trinamool MP said that the Governor was “tweeting to intimidate public servants, and under these two Sections [186 and 189], no permission is required for this [prosecution], against anyone who is doing illegal work in a government position”.
Constitutional expert and retired Supreme Court Justice Asok Kumar Ganguly said there was no provision in law to start criminal proceedings against a sitting Governor.
Diversionary tactics
Reacting to the allegations, Mr. Dhankhar said that it was “a classic case of memory lapse and law and Constitution”. He described it as the “unfolding of a strategy to take diversionary route so that burning issues get to back burner”.
“I would continue to discharge vigorously my constitutional obligations undeterred by any diversionary strategic moves and vindicate my oath of office under Article 159 of the constitution to defend, preserve and protect the constitution and to serve the people of the state,” he added.
He said in a statement that he could not “fiddle” in the Raj Bhavan when the “state is in flames of political violence; ill governance; nosediving of law and order with administration and police politicised and power corridors infested by those who lack legal authority and constitutional sanction”.
