Dismissing media reports claiming he had approved the exclusion of areas of Bally Municipality from the jurisdiction of the Howrah civic body, West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar on Saturday said it is under consideration as inputs from Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee are awaited.
He had earlier accused the Trinamool Congress government of not providing information he had sought on the Howrah Municipal Corporation (Amendment) Bill, 2021, sent to him for his assent.
Taking to Twitter, he said, “Reports in media that West Bengal Governor Shri Jagdeep Dhankhar has put his seal of approval on the Howrah Municipal Corporation (Amendment) Bill, 2021, are not correct. It is under consideration under Article 200 of the Constitution as inputs @MamataOfficial are awaited.”
Article 200 of the Constitution empowers a Governor to either give or withhold assent to a Bill or reserve it for the consideration of the President.
Passed by Assembly
The Howrah Municipal Corporation (Amendment) Bill, 2021, that proposed to separate Bally Municipality from the jurisdiction of the HMC, was passed by the Assembly recently.
TMC spokesman Kunal Ghosh said, “The Governor is going beyond his jurisdiction. He should give assent to a Bill passed by the House if he hasn’t as he claims.”
Opposition leader Suvendu Adhikari said the Governor has already pointed out that he has not given his nod to the Bill. “It is up to the Governor, it is his discretion. The TMC should not force him and use the gubernatorial office for its political gains,” he added.
West Bengal State Election Commissioner Saurav Das had called on Mr. Dhankhar on Friday and discussed issues related to pending municipal polls in the State, amid allegations of rigging and intimidation against the TMC by the opposition camps during the December Kolkata Municipal Corporation election.
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