Kolkata, May 15 (UNI) Reacting sharply to ECI's invocation of article 324, curtailing election campaign time by 24 hours, and removal of Home secretary Atri Bhattacharya and ADG/CID Rajiv Kumar ahead of May 19 LS election, West Bengal chief minister and TMC chairperson Mamata Banerjee claimed the move was a directive from Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP president Amit Shah.
Slamming the ECI's deputy election commissioner Sudeep Jain, Ms Banerjee claimed that the wrong doers have been awarded and wronged have been punished referring to Tuesday's vandalism of a bust of Iswarchandra Vidyasager and clashes at Amit Shah road show in north Kolkata.
She said the retired IAS and IPS officers (Ajay Naik and Vivek Dubey) have been given full authority to run the show, while the state IAS and IPS officers were rendered mute spectators. "The appointment of those two retired officers is illegal," claimed Ms Banerjee during a media conference at her Kalighat residence.
She said now people would give fitting reply to the ECI and Mr Modi and Amit Shah, adding that they would be defeated at the polls.
She said this ECI move was unprecedented and it was an insult to the people of Bengal and announced a state-wide protest tomorrow.
She said the ECI decision was to give advantage to Mr Modi, who has two election meetings in Bengal on Thursday, and deprive others from reaching out to people for final leg of the campaign for the last phase polls to nine seats in West Bengal.
Ms Banerjee also alleged that the violence during the Amit Shah's road show was pre-planned and pre-meditated and said her fight against Modi and Shah would be continued.
She also claimed that Dy election commissioner had threatened the IAS and IPS officers here, and wondered what state home minster and ADG/CID did.
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