Didi threatens to ‘slap’ journalists
After the threat to “whip”, it was the turn for “slap”. Losing her cool again, West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee threatened to “slap” the media. Her latest outburst came during her visit to Mati Utsav at Panagarh in Burdwan on Saturday afternoon.
At around 1.30 pm, she was visiting a stall and was visibly in a pleasant mood. Some photojournalists tried to take her pictures from inside the outlet amidst jostling with her security personnel. Instantly her mood changed.
Turning furious, Ms Banerjee ran towards the photographers and showing her right hand with a posture of slap, she told the photographers: “I will slap you... indisciplined. Can’t you see that a fire is lit up here for cooking?” Ms Banerjee then left the venue in anger.
However, she returned after 10 minutes. But her behaviour left everyone shocked.
This was the second time she had shown such behaviour within four days. While coming out of the Kolkata Book Fair on February 6 evening, Ms Banerjee had humiliated her security personnel — Kolkata police’s special branch officer K.K. Dwivedi — in public for delay in the arrival of her car.
Like the previous occasion, her latest outburst triggered an uproar on Sunday.
State Congress president Pradip Bhattacharya said, “It would be a disaster if she continues to make loose comments daily. I do not know the medicine which can cure such behaviour. But I urge the people of the state to offer the medicine, if they know, to the patient to get her cured.”
Mr Bhattacharya pointed out, “Ms Banerjee’s outburst proves the amount of intolerance in her about others. This is sending a very wrong message about the politicians of this state to the masses.”
Expressing his shock, state BJP president Rahul Sinha said, “I am speechless. I had earlier said that the chief minister needs counselling.”
The state BJP president further added, “Now I feel that it’s a ‘go-as-you-like’ government which is ruling the state. She is behaving the way the people act in the ‘go-as-you-like’ show. It is unbecoming of Ms Banerjee because her predecessors had created a stature about the chief ministership irrespective of their success or failure.”
Slamming the chief minister, the CPI(M) central committee member, Mr Mohammed Salim, said: “She first threatened to beat the Prime Minister, then her security officer and now the media. Her attitude exposes her mentality of showing off power. She is doing just that.”
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