Oppn deliberately delaying polls: Mamata

Kolkata: Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee came down heavily on the Opposition parties on Monday, stating that they are deliberately delaying the Panchayat polls, which is causing a huge setback.

Stating that election is a democratic right, she said: "Why are you (Opposition political parties) not going for the election and purposely delaying by putting forward different political questions?"

She maintained that CPI(M), Congress and BJP play a different role in Delhi and they spread canards here to gain political mileage. "People from across the country dislike BJP as they are encouraging riots and sexual assaults. Around 12,000 farmers have committed suicide. I am not ready to take any political advice from such a political party. But the real fact is that we are suffering as we cannot carry on with our development work," she said.

With the development work getting delayed due to the ongoing impasse regarding the Panchayat polls, Banerjee raised her concern as it is causing a huge setback for the state.

She said: "I would not comment on the matter related to the Court. But practically, we are suffering as the state government had organised all its work as per the administrative calendar and it was considered that the election process would get completed within one month…We had prepared the work schedule accordingly. Now there is an uncertainty. The work is getting withheld. We will not get back the time we are losing."

Banerjee said that the State Election Commission had declared the poll dates and it was scheduled to get completed by the second week of May. The temperature soars high, even up to 50 degree Celsius, after the second week of May in districts including Bankura, Birbhum, Purulia and May.

Last time, the election was held in August and it was almost during the floods and in the month of Ramzan. Election during any festival is problematic.

Banerjee once again reacted sharply against the circulation of false news. She once again stated that only seven sporadic incidents have taken place in 58,000 booths. She said: "ABP Ananda is intentionally doing this. They did the same conspiracy before the 2016 Assembly election…Today, a media house is doing the same conspiracy. It is a media trial ahead of the trial in court. This is my personal opinion. I have full regards for court...But why this media trial before the court's trial?"