The centre is not receiving expected support from the Bengal government over return of stranded migrants, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said in a letter to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today.
In his letter the Home Minister accused the Bengal government of not allowing “shramik (worker)” trains run by the Railways to reach the state and declared this to be an “injustice” for Bengali migrants stranded across the country. Mr Shah pointed out that the centre had, so far, helped over two lakh migrants return home amid the coronavirus lockdown and warned the Bengal government that non-cooperation would create hardship for its migrants.
“… we are not getting expected support from West Bengal. The state government is not allowing trains to reach. This is injustice for West Bengal migrant labourers. This will create further hardship for them,” Mr Shah wrote.
Abhishek Banerjee, nephew of Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and a member of the ruling Trinamool Congress, hit back, accusing Mr Shah of spreading a “bundle of lies”.
“A Home Minister failing to discharge his duties during this crisis speaks after weeks of silence, only to mislead people with (a) bundle of lies! Ironically, he is talking about the very people who have been literally left to fate by his own government,” Mr Banerjee hit back.
Leave a Reply