West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's fiery speech on Wednesday wherein she made the 'if Bengal burns, so will Assam' remarks, has irked the BJP and Assam leadership who accused her of playing divisive politics. Her call to junior doctors, who are on a cease-work for 20 days, to return to work also triggered a controversy after the protesters hit out at the chief minister for her 'veiled threat'.
Mamata, who is battling intense protest over the rape and murder of a trainee doctor at the R G Kar Medical College Hospital in Kolkata, made the remark while denouncing the BJP for calling a 12-hour Bangla bandh on Wednesday. She said the BJP was trying to reap political dividends by exploiting the emotions of ordinary people. "They want to malign Bengal and plotted a conspiracy to derail the probe into her death. If Bengal is set on fire, Assam, northeast, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha and Delhi will also be affected," the TMC chief said.
However, her words drew BJP's and Assam ministers's ire. Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma took to X to slam Mamata. "Didi, how dare you threaten Assam? Don't show us bloodshot eyes. Don't try to set India on fire with your politics of failure. It does not suit you to speak divisive language," he added.
Assam Minister Pijush Hazarika too criticised Mamata for her remarks, equating her to a bully. "She can't bully, or threaten us. I seriously condemn her. She can't control law and order in her state and is threatening us. It will not happen in Assam, I am assuring you," the minister added.
The BJP leadership in West Bengal too called her remarks, stating it was "unthinkable" for an elected Chief Minister to make such a comment.
Mamata also took a defensive stance on the issue of junior doctor's strike. The resident doctors have been on cease-work for 20 days now to protest the alleged rape-murder of the RG Kar hospital medic. She urged them to return to work and said she didn't want to lodge FIRs against the striking doctors in consideration of their future careers.
Her words did not go down well with the protesting medics, who interpreted the chief minister's remark as a "veiled threat". They said they could not be threatened with an FIR. A member of the West Bengal Junior Doctors' Forum said they would not withdraw the agitation unless their demands for justice for the deceased and punishment for all responsible were met.
As Mamata's words reached them, the junior doctors began chanting. "Don't scare us with an FIR!"