Air of hatred in country, says WB Governor Jagdeep Dhanakar; Sticks to speech prepared by state govt

West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar on Friday did not make any changes in his speech prepared by the state government for his address at the beginning of Budget session. This ensured that there was no confrontation between the Governor and the state government over the speech as the former earlier said that he may make changes to the speech.

Condoling the deaths in the country due to panic over NRC the Governor stated in his speech that the “basic values and principles” of the Constitution are under challenge. He further stated that while the formation of Government in a democracy “depends on numbers” the Government should be cautious about the “security and sentiment” of all sections of people.

“Spreading misinformation is the order of the day and rejection of all forms of dissent is the new fashion in the name of patriotism,” stated the Governor.

He also stated that a “general air of intolerance, bigotry and hatred” is straining the “thread of unity” in the country. Referring to the current condition of the economy the Governor stated that “we have to focus our energy” to meet the challenges of “poverty and unemployment.”

He also stated that “internal dissensions” were diverting attention from the country’s current economic slowdown.

He mentioned that the state government was “strongly against the division of people” in the name of NPR and NRC.

“The West Bengal Legislative Assembly passed a resolution on September 9, 2019 against NRC in any way in the state,” stated the Governor adding that the Assembly had also passed a resolution urging the Centre to take “effective steps for repeal” of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA).

“The State Government also urges that NRC exercise not at all be undertaken and NPR exercise be withdrawn immediately,” stated Dhankhar.

There was an apprehension of a showdown between the Governor and the state government as the former had earlier said that being the Constitutional head of the state he has right to include his observations in the speech. However, any confrontation over the issue was averted as he read out the speech verbatim.