Published 16:39 IST, December 27th 2019
No detention centres in Bengal till I'm alive: Mamata Banerjee's anti-CAA stir escalates
In a massive statement West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, on Friday, said that there would be no detention centres in the state till she is alive
In a massive statement West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, on Friday, said that there would be no detention centres in the state till she is alive, adding that no one could snatch anyone's citizenship rights. This statement comes a day after West Bengal BJP chief Dilip Ghosh said that NRC in the state will be contemplated after the implementation of CAA. He said that NRC was 'need in Bengal' as the infiltrators had become Banerjee's vote bank, after BJP's pro-NRC rally in Kolkata.
Mamata Banerjee on detention centres
Detention centres debate
The politics around detention centres started after PM Modi said that there were no detention centres in Assam set up by his government. This was countered by former Congress chief Rahul Gandhi who shared a a news clip showing the detention centre in Assam's Goalpara stating that the Home Ministry in 2018 had sanctioned Rs. 46.41 crores to construct it, which has allegedly been 70% completed. He further alleged that PM Modi was lying to the public.
The BJP countered this stating that the UPA government's Ministry of Home Affairs had admitted in 2011 that three detention camps were opened in Assam - Gaolpara, Kokrajhar, and Silchar where 362 people have been detained in these detention camps. Former Assam CM Tarun Gogoi too admitted to their existence adding that they were needed as Bangladesh was not accepting genuine foreigners back in their country then. He has since then shifted the blame to BJP asking 'Why did they not stop infiltrators?'
Mamata Banerjee on CAA, NRC
The Banerjee government has stalled the preparation/ updation of the National population register (NPR) process amid the protests against the amended Citizenship Act. Banerjee has vociferously said ' No CAA No NRC ' in Bengal, writing to several Opposition leaders for joint opposition to the Act. She has also suggested a UN-monitored referendum on the issue and has maintained that NRC and CAA will never be implemented in Bengal.
Previously, in 2005, the then-Kolkata Dakshin MP Banerjee questioned the then-Deputy Speaker and Shiromani Akali Dal leader Charanjit Singh Atwal as to why the UPA parliament was ignoring the issue of Bangladeshi infiltration. She accused the parliament of ignoring the issue, being biased against West Bengal. Reports state that after her outburst in the parliament, she had thrown a sheaf of papers at the Deputy Speaker, announcing her resignation from the House.
Updated 16:39 IST, December 27th 2019