"She Cannot Bully Me": Bengal Governor Hits Out At Mamata Banerjee

West Bengal Governor CV Ananda Bose on Saturday came down heavily on state Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and said that she cannot bully or terrify him and she has no right to do character assassination through lies.

While speaking with ANI, Bose targeted the West Bengal Chief Minister and said that Mamata Banerjee has crossed all the limits. "She has to function within the requirements of civilized conduct. As a Chief Minister, I gave her all regard and respect, considering her as my esteemed constitutional colleague. But she feels that she can bully anybody and cast aspersions on my character. My character is not to be negotiated by an individual like Mamata Banerjee."

The governor further said that any amount of assassination of his self-respect will not be tolerated. "She cannot bully or terrify me. She has not grown up to that. As a chief minister, if she differs from me, certainly there are constitutional provisions to take care of that. As an individual, she has no right to do character assassination through lies." "This cannot be allowed. It is not megalomania, it is 'Mamata mania' that cannot be tolerated. I will file a defamation case against the individual, Mamata Banerjee who happens to be the Chief Minister," he added.

The remarks by Bose come after Mamata Banerjee said that women are not feeling safe in Raj Bhavan.

Bose spoke about the situation of the state and said, "It is very disturbing, shocking, and shattering to see that West Bengal is facing a financial breakdown. Its public finance is in the doldrums."

He added, "As a responsible governor, I, upon the authority vested in the governor under Article 167 of the Constitution of India, have asked for an emergency cabinet meeting to discuss this issue and also issue a white paper on the finances of the state."

Bose also talked about Banerjee's meeting on hawkers and encroachment in the state, he said, "To say the least, 'Gareebi hatao, gareebo ko nahi.' Before you displace poor hawkers, you should have thought about settling them. This is highly disorganised, untimely, distressing, ill-implemented reform..."

Speaking on law and order situation in the state, Bose said that the government is expected to contain violence. "I feel there is government-sponsored violence in the state. There is 'gundagiri'..."

He added further, "As a governor, it is my duty to see that the government functions in accordance with the Constitution of India. I will do my duty. My stand against corruption will continue till I reach the goal. As Swami Vivekananda said, 'Arise, awake, and stop not till the goal is reached.' My goal is to see corruption-free, and violence-free Bengal."

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)