Gov meets Prez, discusses safety

West Bengal governor M.K. Narayanan on Friday met President Pranab Mukherjee and Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh and briefed them about the law and order situation in the state which has witnessed a spate of violence during the ongoing panchayat polls. Mr Narayanan, who also met home minister Sushilkumar Shinde, said that the responsibility of maintaining law and order rests with the state government and called for effective use of central forces by the Trinamul Congress-ruled state government. Mr Narayanan also termed as “irresponsible’’ the comments made by TMC’s district president Anubrata Mandal to allegedly attach the police with bombs. A day after sporadic violence was witnessed in the state during the third phase of panchayat polls, Mr Narayanan said, “Many CRPF personnel are to be deployed. ... I hope they are deployed,” he said. “It is important to ensure safety and security of people participating in the (panchayat) elections so that they give certain sense of confidence. I am hoping that they have been deployed.’’. “It is for the state government to help the State Election Commission to maintain law and order,” Mr Narayanan said. The Opposition CPI(M) has alleged that people were stopped from voting in several areas of East Midnapore. It may be recalled that there has been a spate of violent incidents in the run-up to the panchayat polls, including killings and ransacking of houses of opposition activists and party offices. Senior leaders of the ruling Trinamul Congress, including MPs, have also allegedly been caught on tape indulging in rabble-rousing against political opponents.