West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar on Saturday met Union Home Minister Amit Shah in New Delhi. Speaking to journalists after the meeting in the capital, Mr. Dhankhar spoke about a host of issues, including ensuring that the upcoming Assembly polls in the State were held peacefully, without any violence.
“I firmly believe that governance has no meaning in West Bengal unless elections are through pure mechanism, elections are held in accordance with law,” the Governor said.
Referring to instances of violence in the earlier elections in the State, Mr. Dhankhar said the upcoming Assembly polls provided a great opportunity for West Bengal to engage in “the makeover of image so far as elections are concerned”.
“It’s time for us to set an example by engaging into best practices so that every voter is in a position to freely, fairly express their franchise in a peaceful atmosphere where violence has no role,” he said.
The Governor’s meeting with the Union Home Minister comes at a time when the relations between the State government and the Raj Bhawan in West Bengal are far from cordial, and elections are scheduled to be held in the State in the next few months.
Two days ago, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had met the Governor at the Raj Bhawan in Kolkata . Senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leadership, including the Home Minister, have said that they were not in favour of President’s Rule in West Bengal.
While Mr. Dhankhar refused to divulge what had transpired in his meetings with Ms. Banerjee and the Home Minister, he said that he spoke to both of them for 75 minutes. The Governor continued with his accusations that the police in West Bengal was “political” but added that many officers have heeded his repeated utterances that government officials should work in a non-partisan way.
Mr. Dhankhar also responded to questions on the role of the Governor when the responsibility for conducting polls lies with the Election Commission of India, a constitutional body. “Every citizen of the State has a role. As Governor of West Bengal, my oath of office says I have to preserve, protect and defend the Indian Constitution and Article 159. I have to serve the people of West Bengal to the best of my capacity,” he added.
