CPI flays both CM Mamata Banerjee, Centre over Kolkata developments

The CPI has criticised both the Centre and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee over the developments following CBI's attempt to question Kolkata Police commissioner in a chit fund scam and demanded a transparent inquiry into the Ponzi schemes.

A day after Banerjee ended her three-day dharna in Kolkata protesting the CBI's action, CPI General Secretary S Sudhakar Reddy Wednesday accused her of trying to convert the issue into a crisis involving Centre-state relations.

He said both the action and reaction were not good for democracy.

Hitting out at the NDA government, he alleged cases had been filed before the elections against leaders, including Samajwadi Party's Akhilesh Yadav, BSP chief Mayawati, former JNU student union leader Kanhaiya Kumar.

The Central government should stop using CBI and the Enforcement Directorate against political opponents, he told reporters here.

Reddy alleged BJP's political opponents, including Congress president Rahul Gandhi and his mother Sonia Gandhi, were being made accused in some case or the other.

On the other hand, there had been no progress in the investigation into cases involving BJP leaders, he claimed.

Equally undemocratically, Mamata Banerjee reacted by arresting the CBI people, he said referring to the dharna staged by the Trinamool Congress chief protesting the central investigation agency's attempt to question Police Commissioner Rajeev Kumar.

"We feel that this type of thing is not good for the Indian democracy. Action and reaction both," Reddy said, seeking a transparent inquiry into the Saradha and Rosevalley scams in which gullible investors had been allegedly duped.

On the coming Lok Sabha elections, he said no formal discussion had taken place on a possible alliance between the Left parties and the Congress in West Bengal.

The CPI leader sought to know why Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, who has proposed a federal front, was 'silent' on the developments in West Bengal.

He criticised the TRS government in Telangana for not having a full-fledged cabinet though the government assumed office on December 13.

Along with Rao, only Mohd Mehmood Ali had been sworn in as minister.

-PTI