Amit Shah said Uttar Pradesh has witnessed no political killings since the BJP came to power.
Sparring between the BJP and Trinamool Congress continued on Monday, with Home Minister Amit Shah saying that the Centre has every right to demand that Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee "immediately end" the spate of political killings in West Bengal.
Rejecting the Trinamool Congress' charge of selectively issuing advisories to West Bengal while ignoring Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, Amit Shah said the advisory to the state was not over local law and order but political killings. He countered the Trinamool Congress' Derek O'Brien on Bihar, where over 100 children died due to acute encephalitis, saying the Home Ministry does not issue health advisories.
Amit Shah also defended Uttar Pradesh, saying that the northern state has witnessed no political killings since the BJP came to power.
The Home Minister said it was Mamata Banerjee's "constitutional responsibility" to halt political killings in West Bengal, and insisted that he has the right to advise the West Bengal Chief Minister on the matter.
"Derek O' Brien is a respected member who has a regret against my department that it issued two advisories in one week to West Bengal. He asked me why an advisory was not issued to Bihar even though several children died," Shah said, adding that the Home Ministry issues advisories related to internal security and not health concerns.
When Derek O'Brien retorted that he had sought to know why an advisory was not issued to Uttar Pradesh by the Home Ministry, Amit Shah clarified that the Home Ministry had not issued an advisory to West Bengal over law and order problems but over the killing of political party workers -- which is a "serious threat to democracy".
"Instead of raising this issue in Parliament, I would appeal to Mamata Banerjee to restore peace in the state because it is her constitutional responsibility. She should do it immediately, and I have a right to advise her. These political killings are not good for a healthy democracy. They should be stopped immediately," said Amit Shah, who is also the BJP chief.
The Home Minister made the remarks while replying to the debate in Rajya Sabha on a statutory resolution to extend President's rule in Jammu and Kashmir by six months.