Washington:
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee says that Marxists and Maoists are plotting to kill her in league with the Pakistani intelligence, North Korea, Venezuela and Hungary.
Banerjee made the sensational charge in an interview to the Washington Post. The Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) rubbished the allegation.
Banerjee told the Post how her "Marxist political opponents were plotting with Maoist rebels to discredit and kill her".
They were in league with the Inter-Service Intelligence (ISI) agency of Pakistan and that this alleged plot was financed by North Korea, Venezuela and Hungary.
"They have given me the death sentence," she said.
Regarding American investment in West Bengal, she said: "We cannot offer what other states can offer, because of our situation - but we can extend our cooperation from the heart.
"We can touch your heart, but maybe not financially."
The chief minister reiterated her opposition to multinational supermarkets. "I am ready to die, but I cannot cheat the people," she added.
In New Delhi, CPI-M leader Sitaram Yechury expressed disgust that a Chief Minister and a former cabinet minister had made the accusation against countries with which India has diplomatic relations.
"There can be nothing more ridiculous," he said.