West Bengal returned forces sent by Centre, says minister

Union Minister Piyush Goyal on Saturday accused West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee for not cooperating with the central government over the Darjeeling unrest and accused the state government of returning forces sent by the Centre.

The comments of Union Minister of State for Power follows Banerjee's accusation that the central government was not cooperating over the violent agitation in Darjeeling, which is witnessing a prolonged movement demanding a separate state of Gorkhaland.

"We condemn Mamata Banerjee's politics... Home Minister Rajnath Singh called her (Banerjee) twice and asked her to normalise the situation in Darjeeling. We were sending forces, but Mamata Banerjee's Principal Secretary stopped them (forces)," Goyal told a press conference here.

"The truth should come out before the country. She (Banerjee) is making false allegations on the Centre...she should be held answerable for this," Goyal said.

Banerjee on Saturday accused the central government of "non-cooperation" over the situation in Darjeeling and claimed the crisis could have been averted through timely deployment of central forces.

Home Ministry sources in Delhi said on Saturday that West Bengal sent back four companies of the Border Security Force (BSF) and four companies of additional paramilitary forces.