Unfazed by West Bengal chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee’s complaint of Trinamul Congress-Maoist nexus to Union home minister P. Chidambaram, Trinamul Congress chief Mamata Banerjee dismissed it as inconsequential.
“They have no other issue. They are not bothered about the progress of the state. The CPI(M) has only one task now: my character assassination. They criticised Tagore, branded Netaji Subhas Bose as slave of Japanese and Indira Gandhi as witch. What else do you expect from them?” she asked, adding that before every election the chief minister and his party created issues. She was speaking to reporters before leaving for Delhi.
Taking strong exception to Mr Bhattacharjee’s charge that the Trinamul Congress was openly and directly collaborating with the Maoists, Ms Banerjee said, “It was they who brought the Maoists and helped them set up camps here. The CPI(M) captured Keshpur and Garbeta with Maoist help.” She even demanded CBI probe into the capture of Garbeta and Keshpur by the CPI(M).
Asked to comment on the virtual admission of the chief minister of armed camps, the Trinamul chief said, “Only an admission will not absolve them. They will have to pay for the crime they committed by setting up camps of harmads (armed cadre).”