‘Has hurt me’: Bengal guv on CM skipping unveiling of Vajpayee’s portrait

The ongoing spat between West Bengal governor Jagdeep Dhankhar and chief minister Mamata Banerjee took a fresh turn on Wednesday when she skipped a programme at Raj Bhawan where she was invited to unveil a portrait of former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

This is not the first time the governor and the chief minister have not seen eye to eye since he was appointed as the constitutional head of the state in July this year.

There have been more than a dozen incidents in the last five months, when Dhankhar and Mamata Banerjee have been at loggerheads over several issues including law and order situation in the state to running of universities.

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Dhankhar said he was pained by the absence of Mamata Banerjee and senior state bureaucrats, who were informed about the programme in November.

“I understand that as a chief minister, she (Banerjee) could be having several pressing engagements. But she did not even send a representative,” he said while speaking to reporters.

Incidentally, the chief minister, who served in Vajpayee’s cabinet from 2001 to 2004, paid her respects through her first tweet of the day.

“Tribute to Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ji on his birth anniversary. He was a statesman who rose above partisan politics for the country’s good. We miss him a lot,” Banerjee posted on Twitter.

Governor Dhankhar even referred to the day when Vajpayee visited Banerjee’s home at Kalighat in south Kolkata and met her mother.

“Atal Ji used to say you may not agree on every point of view. Disagreement doesn’t make you enemies,” he said.

“I personally know that from 2001 to 2004 Ajal Ji contributed hugely to the career prospects of the honourable chief minister,” he added.

He also listed the reasons that bothered him about Mamata Banerjee’s absence.

“I am not for a moment saying she (Banerjee) had to be here to unveil (the portrait). As the chief minister, she may have many engagements. But the lack of acknowledgement has hurt me. Lack of representation from the side of the government and bureaucracy has hurt me,” said the governor.

“Individuals can carry the baggage of the past. A governor and a chief minister cannot carry the baggage of the past,” said Dhankhar and referred so some recent incidents that led to sharp differences between the government and Raj Bhawan.

The portrait unveiled at the King Room of Raj Bhawan is a three-dimensional one.

“The artist has done a great job,” Dhankhar said.