West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankar has reportedly 'prorogued' the state Assembly. In an announcement on Twitter, Dhankar said, "In exercise of the powers conferred upon me by sub-clause (a) of clause (2) of Article 174 of the Constitution, I, Jagdeep Dhankhar, Governor of the State of West Bengal, hereby prorogue the West Bengal Legislative Assembly with effect from 12 February, 2022."
There has been no response from TMC yet. "We are assessing the situation," a Rajya Sabha MP said. Speaking to Outlook on condition of anonymity, however, a senior TMC leader said that the government itself has recommended it but the minister did not clarify why.
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The reports come in the wake of an ongoing public rift between West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and Dhankar, whom she has previously referred to as an "RSS agent".
Banerjee vs Dhankar
Claiming that she was "disturbed" by his regular posts against her government on the microblogging platform, Banerjee announced last month that she had blocked his profile on Twitter. The CM said she has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi several times, seeking the removal of Dhankhar.
In the past, Banerjee has referred to Dhankar as an "RSS man" while the latter has maintained that he has always acted according to the Constitution.
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The duo has clashed over several incidents since Dhankar took charge as the Governor of Bengal in 2019. Following violence and rioting in Bhatpara in 2019 around the time of his appointment, Dhnakar had summoned the DGP to discuss the law and order situation, a move that did not sit well with TMC, though no official reaction was made.
Later in September, Dhankar arrived at the rescue of the then Union Minister and BJP leader Babul Supriyo when he was shown black flags by students and protesters in Jadavpur University in Kolkata. TMC's secretary-general and state's education minister Partha Chatterjee had at the time alleged that Dhankar went to JU even after Banerjee requested him not to as TMC was trying to bring the situation under control.
(This is a breaking story. Further details will be updated soon)
