Mamata Banerjee said we should work according to the constitution (File)
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday took a swipe at the BJP over government formation in Maharashtra. "I have heard of freedom at midnight but never of a chupke-chupke (clandestine) government being formed."
Speaking in the state legislature at the end of a function to celebrate 70 years of the Constitution, Ms Banerjee said, "We should work according to the Constitution. But that is not happening."
Asked about the role of the Governor -- in Maharashtra and Bengal, Ms Banerjee said, "Something happened (in the role of the governor). In my state the governor is being misused like anything."
Ms Banerjee's remarks came soon after Governor Jagdeep Dhankar left the Assembly following his address. In a clear worsening of relations, the two did not even exchange pleasantries inside the Assembly.
Earlier, too, there was no interaction when Mamata Banerjee waited nearby while the Governor garlanded BR Ambedkar's statue.
Several prominent persons were present in the Assembly during the Governor's speech in the Assembly, including the former NSA chief and Bengal governor Mr MK Narayanan. Ms Meira Kumar, the former Lok Sabha speaker, who had earlier joined several leaders in garlanding the statue of Mr BR Ambedkar at the Assembly, had left by the time Governor Dhankar arrived to make his speech.
Earlier in the day, the leader of opposition Congress MLA Abdul Mannan left the Assembly in something of a huff without addressing the House because he had been allotted just 7 minutes to speak while other ruling party leaders got 20 minutes.