West Bengal minister Srikanta Mahata. (Twitter/@SrikantaMahata4)West Bengal Minister of State of Consumer Affairs Srikanta Mahata stoked a controversy over his statement that the Trinamool Congress MLAs and MPs from the entertainment industry were “looters” and the party was listening to “these bad people” at the cost of honest workers.
TMC’s Paschim Medinipur co-ordinator Ajit Maity said on Sunday that the minister was served a show-cause notice for his remark which had “harmed the image of the party”.
In his reply, Mahata regretted making the statement, saying “it was an emotional outburst”, Maity said.
Addressing a workers’ meeting at Shalbani on Friday, Mahata had said, “The party is listening to the bad people who are looters. If this continues, we can not continue in this party.”
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The minister named actors June Maliah (MLA), Nusrat Jahan (MP), Mimi Chakraborty (MP) and Sayantika Banerjee. “Now, June Maliah, Mimi and Nusrat are considered assets of the party. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, party general secretary Abhishek Banerjee and other top leaders are accepting only what they are saying. If they are assets, I have no problem if my ministry is taken back. Now people are saying that all ministers are thieves,” he said.
“If the party only listens to thieves, if people in metros like Kolkata are involved in rampant loot, should we keep silent?… We have to choose our path. Either we have to go to an ashram shunning everything or participate in social movements.”
TMC state spokesperson Kunal Ghosh said the party does not approve of his views.
MLA Maliah said she was happy that the party’s disciplinary committee promptly took up the issue and Mahata was show-caused.
Sayantika Banerjee, a state secretary of the party, said, “I have heard about the issue but do not want to comment on it in public.”
BJP state president Sukanta Majumdar said that Mahata has spoken the truth that the TMC is a party of looters. “Srikanta should explain what he meant by saying that these MLAs and MPs from the showbiz industry are on a looting spree. What exactly are they looting? He owes an explanation to the people of Bengal,” Majumdar added.
In his response, Mahata regretted having made the statement. “I should not have said what I did. I was wrong,” he said.
Even as the TMC state leadership did not react to his apology, party’s Paschim Medinipur co-ordinator Ajit Maity said, “He tendered an apology and the party are not going to take any step against him.”
A senior TMC leader said, “Though he (Mahata) has embarrassed the party, it is true that many of our leaders also believe what he said. Senior leaders continue their silence on the issue.”
—With PTI Inputs