Uproar in West Bengal Assembly over privilege motion against BJP legislator

Kolkata, Feb 7 (IANS) Pandemonium broke out at the West Bengal Assembly on the last day of the Budget Session of the House on Saturday after the Treasury Bench moved a breach of privilege motion against Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) legislator and fashion designer-turned-politician Agnimitra Paul over a comment made by her in the House on Friday that had arguably hurt minority sentiments.

On Saturday, after the state Agriculture and Parliamentary Affairs Minister, Sovandeb Chattopadhyay, moved the motion of privilege against Paul, BJP legislators started protesting.

“Our legislator wanted to explain what she said. She also explained that after the Speaker of the House allowed her. But still, the breach of privilege motion was moved against her. This was done at the insistence of Cabinet members from the minority community,” said BJP legislator Mihir Goswami.

First, BJP legislators protested within the House and later walked out shouting slogans. After coming out of the House, they continued their protests on the Assembly lawn, raising slogans.

The Speaker of the House, Biman Bandopadhyay, forwarded the motion on breach of privilege to the Privilege Committee of the Assembly, which will decide the next course of action in the matter.

On Saturday, the West Bengal government also brought a motion to rename Murshidabad University as Murshidabad Maharaja Krishnath University. The motion was passed.

Murshidabad University was established by upgrading Krishnath College through the Murshidabad University Act, 2018. Krishnath College, one of the oldest and most respected institutions of higher learning in West Bengal, was established in Berhampore in 1853. The college was founded by Maharaja Krishnath to embody the spirit of social reform, education, and cultural synthesis.

Renaming the university after him provides a distinct and proud historical identity, differentiating it from other state universities and rooting it firmly in the correct historical perspective.

--IANS