Mamata accuses BJP of politicising natural calamity, urges restraint

Kolkata: After the BJP circulated photos and videos of waterlogged streets, blaming the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC), Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress (TMC) chairperson Mamata Banerjee condemned it and accused the saffron party of ‘politicising’ a natural calamity.

She stated that her party had never commented publicly following natural disasters in Uttarakhand and urged the BJP to refrain from politicising the issue.

“Some political parties are issuing negative statements. We urge them not to do politics. In Uttarakhand, many have died. There is no connection till today. There were calamities in UP and Bihar. Those who are doing negative or false campaigns on social media have been urged to abstain from doing so. We condemn those who politicise a natural calamity. We never spoke about the incidents that happened in these states,” Banerjee said.

A heavy overnight rain that paralysed normal life turned political, with the BJP and Trinamool Congress trading charges against each other. The BJP started attacking the ruling party after the incident. The ruling party, on the other hand, accused the BJP of “weaponising pain to spread hate” instead of helping people.

BJP’s Yuva Morcha state president Dr Indranil Khan on social media wrote: “The alert for very heavy rainfall had already been issued by the Indian Meteorological Department yesterday. The state and civic authorities were caught napping as Kolkata got drowned in the overnight deluge.”

Senior Trinamool Congress leader Shashi Panja, speaking on the issue, said: “A natural calamity left the city’s streets flooded. KMC and state government officials were on the streets to minimize the suffering of the people. Instead of showing humanity, the BJP was trying to politicise the issue. When the situation is adverse in Delhi and Gurgaon due to rains, the BJP and the Centre then turned a deaf ear to the situation.”

Incidentally, Kolkata Mayor Firhad Hakim and other senior officials of the KMC were out in the streets to handle the situation. Various state government officials were also in the streets. Even the Chief Minister had inspected some waterlogged areas in the morning. The state government also opened a control room at Nabanna, and the Chief Minister monitored the situation throughout the day.