West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has accused President Droupadi Murmu of acting on the advice of the BJP and questioned her silence on issues affecting tribal communities in other states. This comes after Murmu raised concerns about the pace of tribal development in West Bengal.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee escalates tensions ahead of assembly polls by accusing President Droupadi Murmu of political bias and criticising her stance on tribal welfare, sparking a major controversy.
Trinamool Congress leader Abhishek Banerjee has warned of a significant increase in cooking gas and fuel prices by the BJP-led central government following the West Bengal assembly elections. He accused the BJP of neglecting the fuel crisis and challenged them to pledge no price hikes for the next five years.
Trinamool Congress leader Abhishek Banerjee alleges the BJP-led government may increase fuel prices after the West Bengal assembly elections, accusing them of neglecting the common man and withholding funds from the state.
The political rivalry in Nandigram that defined West Bengal's 2021 assembly polls is set to return to centre stage in a new arena, with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee locking horns with her protege-turned-adversary Suvendu Adhikari in Bhabanipur, turning the south Kolkata seat into the likely epicentre of the 2026 electoral battle.
A political controversy has erupted in West Bengal after President Droupadi Murmu raised concerns about the lack of development among tribal communities, leading to a clash between Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
New West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Friday said that the state government would prepare a special economic package for the people of Maoist-hit Jangalmahal and was serious about solving the problem within three months.
There is a "high probability" of political leaders coming under a Chhatisgarh-type attack during their panchayat poll campaign in Maoist-hit Jangalmahal in West Bengal, intelligence sources here have indicated.
The Maoist-backed People's Committee against Police Atrocities has called a 24-hour bandh in Jangalmahal in West Bengal on September 19 to protest against alleged torture of its workers by the joint forces and Trinamool Congress workers amidst reports that the extremists are reviving their moribund squads.
With his exit, the TMC will lose a crucial, politically influential vote catcher in the Jungalmahal region and areas in minority-dominated Murshidabad, and the BJP will get a face it badly needs, especially in rural Bengal, reports Aditi Phadnis.
The highest polling percentage of 86.32 was recorded in the Purba Medinipur district, followed by Jhargram (84.74 per cent), Paschim Medinipur (84.71 per cent), Bankura (84.27 per cent) and Purulia (81.77 per cent).
Prime Minister Narendra Modi Thursday attacked West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee for pursuing "appeasement and vote bank politics" which were responsible for infiltration.
Shah, who was accompanied by BJP national vice-president Mukul Roy, national general secretary Kailash Vijayvargya, was greeted with slogans of 'Amit Shah zindabad', 'Bharat Mata ki Jai' by party workers at Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport in Kolkata.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday said there is no alternative to the Trinamool Congress, and no other party can take its place in the state.
Claiming that the Trinamool Congress is not perturbed over desertions by some leaders, she said politics is a solemn ideology and philosophy and one cannot change these everyday like clothes.
Lalgarh, once a nerve centre of Naxal insurgency in West Bengal, now represents a different place.
Fairs are commonplace in the festive season but in tribal West Midnapore, which falls in the erstwhile Maoist-hit Jangalmahal area, it is child marriage fairs which are drawing large crowds.
In a unique protest against fuel price hike, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday rode pillion on an electric scooter to state secretariat Nabanna.
More than a dozen schemes have been announced since the new government took over, with Naxal-dominated Jangalmahal finding a special place.
The Supreme Court judgement on disbanding of Salwa Judum will impact on the anti-Naxal operations, says the Centre which is planning to call a meeting of chief ministers of Orissa and Jharkhand after Chhattisgarh's action on a new law on the issue.
Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee on Saturday alleged that there was a political conspiracy behind the Gyaneshwari Express disaster in West Midnapore and said the Centre has agreed for a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation into the mishap. "From the railways, we have requested the Union home ministry for a CBI investigation into the incident, since it was in Jangalmahal where the joint operation (against Maoists) is on."
Talks between the Maoists and the West Bengal government seems imminent with the Maoist leader Kishenji informing the media late on Wednesday evening that he was ready for discussions.
Union Home Minister and top Bharatiya Janata Party leader Amit Shah on Thursday set a target of 200 out of the total 294 seats in the 2021 West Bengal assembly elections and to come to power in the state, party sources said.
Hasty, ill-conceived steps show how isolated Mamata Banerjee had been from the national political trend. A fascinating excerpt from Sugato Hazra's Losing The Plot: Political Isolation Of West Bengal.
She wondered why PM Modi is not removing his own cabinet secretary or the Union home secretary, if he was so 'fond of making last-minute changes'.
Sporadic incidents of violence were reported from various places that went to polls on Saturday during the first phase of the West Bengal assembly election, even as the overall poll situation was largely peaceful with 79.79 per cent turnout recorded till the end of voting, an official said.
Stunned by the sudden saffron surge, daggers seems to have been drawn in the Trinamool Congress camp with local leaders blaming those holding top party posts for their "lack of foresightedness" and "arrogant approach" as primary reasons behind the poor poll show.
81 per cent voter turnout recorded in West Bengal, 80 per cent in Assam.
Banerjee has fulfilled two key electoral promises: Ridding Lalgarh of Naxals and bringing peace to Darjeeling
During a media interaction, Mamata Banerjee voiced her discontent over the Centre's 'stepfatherly' attitude towards Bengal. Banerjee's detractors feel that the agenda that she conveyed to the media is nothing but an eyewash. According to them, 'Mamata and Modi are heading towards an alliance of convenience'. Indrani Roy reports from Kolkata on the agenda and politics of prime minister two-day visit to the state.
About 17 lakh investors, mostly in West Bengal, who have lost crores of rupees in the Saradha chit fund scam are fast losing hope. The scandal continues to roil West Bengal political circles with several ruling Trinamool Congress leaders being implicated and some arrested. Even West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's name has been dragged into the sordid mess. Indrani Roy presents a FAQ on what the scam is about and the main players behind it.
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