A day after a fierce gun-battle at Lakhanpur jungle in Jungle Mahal between Maoists and joint forces, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Friday appealed to them to give up violence and offered a fresh package. Promising security to Maoists who will surrender, Banerjee said, "We want Maoists to give up the politics of guns and violence and join the mainstream. Return to a normal life with your families."
The notion that the BJP gained its increased tally by wiping out the Left parties and the Congress is completely misleading. Equally misleading is the belief that the TMC held its ground in all its existing seats. A little more than a fifth of the seats Mamata Banerjee's party had won in 2016 was lost to the BJP this time.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday asserted that she would win the ongoing state polls despite injury and eventually aim for power in Delhi.
He had a contingent of about 22-24 armed CRPF commandos who used to move with him every time he travelled in West Bengal.
The West Bengal government has sought permission from the Calcutta High Court to appeal against the Sealdah court order that sentenced Sanjay Roy to life imprisonment until death in the RG Kar hospital doctor's rape and murder case. The state government is seeking the death penalty for Roy, the sole convict in the case, and has expressed dissatisfaction with the Sealdah court's verdict, which did not consider the crime "rarest of the rare." The court also ordered Roy to pay a Rs 50,000 fine and directed the state government to pay compensation of Rs 17 lakh to the family of the deceased doctor.
Congress, which is an ally of the ruling Trinamool Congress in West Bengal, on Monday questioned the recurrence of train accidents and said the railway ministry was not safe in the hands of state Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's party.
Banerjee is undergoing treatment at the SSKM Hospital for injuries on her left leg after she was allegedly pushed by unknown miscreants during campaign in Nandigram.
Mamata alleged that the BJP and the CPI-M were provoking doctors and giving communal colour to the issue.
In a communication to the West Bengal chief secretary, the ministry of home affairs said as per the IPS cadre rules, the Centre prevails over the state government in case of any dispute.
'The CM seems to have forgotten that she is dealing with the Gorkhas, people known for their valour and loyalty to India.' 'It is shameful that Mamata Banerjee and her administration treated them like insurgents, choosing to use live bullets instead of other ways and means to control crowds.'
First, Mamata's pampering of lawless elements masquerading as Trinamool Congress cadres. Second, her promotion of her nephew, Abhishek Banerjee, as a possible successor and the adoption of Prashant Kishor as her political adviser. Neither has gone down well with either her followers or the public, observes Amulya Ganguli.
In a move to increase safety measures, Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee said she plans to increase the number of women commandoes, and women RPF squads, especially in stations where women come in large numbers regularly.
The Minister of Railways Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday announced her ministry will follow a twin strategy of adopting the highest level of technology and pressing into force well-trained manpower, as emphasised in Vision 2020 for safety and security.
The Maha Kumbh, billed as the world's largest gathering, concluded on Wednesday after 45 days, with lakhs of devotees taking a dip in the Sangam, the confluence of the Ganga, Yamuna, and mythical Saraswati rivers. Despite a stampede that killed at least 30 people, millions continued to visit the Kumbh, seeking salvation through the ritual bath. The event saw a mix of faith, tradition, and technology, drawing pilgrims and tourists from across the globe.
Rekha Gupta had the support of the RSS, which actively participated in the Delhi assembly poll campaign to help the BJP win.
The Trinamool Congress won 211 seats.
Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee, a strong votary of dialogue with Maoists and has sought a halt to joint security operations against them, had a meeting with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in New Delhi on Wednesday.
After the Trinamool's overwhelming majority in the West Bengal assembly elections last year, the SSC scam has given fresh ammunition to the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Communist Party of India-Marxist. Ishita Ayan Dutt reports.
Sporadic post-poll violence continued on Tuesday in West Bengal claiming several lives as chief minister Mamata Banerjee asked officials to act decisively and Prime Minister Narendra Modi rang up Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar to express anguish over the law-and-order situation.
Three of the junior doctors who were observing 'fast unto death' in Kolkata and Siliguri city in the northern part of the state have so far been hospitalised after their condition deteriorated.
She also raised the issue of the state's renaming and invited Modi to Bengal.
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.
Acting Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday, in his first visit to the national capital after leading his ruling alliance to an unprecedented second straight term in the state.
Khan, 54, was "out of danger" following an emergency surgery, said the doctors at the Lilavati Hospital where he was rushed following the incident that took place around 2.30 am at his apartment in `Satguru Sharan' building.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday said she had suggested to the Congress that an advisory council comprising prominent personalities from civil society be set up to give a direction to the opposition, but rued that the plan did not materialise.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who will complete a year in office on May 20, has claimed that her government has been able to restore peace in Junglemahal with not a single death reported so far this year.
In the 145-year history of Kolkata Municipal Corporation, nationalist leaders like Deshbandhu Chittaranjan Das, Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose and Bidhan Chandra Roy, also a former chief minister, graced the mayor's chair in pre-Independent India.
Former railway minister and Mamata Banerjee described the Interim Railway Budget for 2009-10 as 'election-oriented' and an eyewash to secure votes.
Trinamool Congress general secretary Abhishek Banerjee and several other party leaders were detained on Tuesday night as they held a dharna at the Union Rural Development Ministry office in New Delhi demanding a meeting with the minister and released around three hours later.
The latest tongue lashing from the leader came while inaugurating a festival in Burdwan district
Four junior doctors are among those summoned by Kolkata police for questioning on Tuesday in connection with the murder and alleged sexual assault case of a second year postgraduate student at a government-run hospital in Kolkata last week.
A deadly terror attack targeting tourists in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam on Tuesday drew strong condemnation and outrage. 26 people, including two foreigners and two locals, were killed in the attack, which is the deadliest in the Valley since the Pulwama strike in 2019. Prime Minister Narendra Modi asserted that the perpetrators will not be spared and their evil agenda will never succeed. Opposition leaders demanded accountability, claiming the government's claims of normalcy in Kashmir have fallen flat.
The Centre is likely to take punitive action against five senior police officers of West Bengal.
More than 20 national leaders will attend the meeting, TMC sources said. Most of them have already arrived in Kolkata.
Hitting out at Union Home Minister Amit Shah's 'Didi-Bhaipo' jibes, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Thursday challenged him to contest an election against her nephew Abhishek Banerjee and then think of fighting her.
She faced off against former disciple-turned-defector Suvendu Adhikari in a very different contest. It's not land acquisition, but an ego clash that has acquired, tragically, communal overtones, explains Kanika Datta.
The Central Bureau has summoned Trinamool Congress's member of Parliament Abhishek Banerjee's brother-in-law in connection with a case of alleged illegal coalmining from the mines of the Eastern Coalfields Limited (ECL) in West Bengal's Asansol, involving the "kingpin" of the racket, Anup Manjhi, officials said on Friday.
BSP supremo Mayawati, AIADMK chief Jayalalithaa and Trinamool Congress leader Mamata Banerjee have been at the centre of intense debate in political circles on which way they will go after May 16, the day of election results.
The e-mail, detailing the points which were discussed and agreed upon between the two sides and also those which weren't, was sent as per the state's requirement based on which the government is expected to issue directives, the doctors said.
Mussavir Hussain Shazib and Adbul Matheen Ahmed Taahaa were traced to their hideout near Kolkata and apprehended by an NIA team, they said.
