Calcutta High Court Judge Abhijit Gangopadhyay has recently presided over a case on illegal construction in Kolkata that made a remark suggesting that the Kolkata Municipal Corporation could potentially seek assistance from the UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s government by hiring bulldozers.
Sources close to the judge clarified that the remark was made in good humor and was not officially recorded in the court proceedings.
However, the judge’s comment didn’t sit well with some political parties in the state.
Trinamool Congress leader Kunal Ghosh reacted to the judge’s remark and stated, “Justice Abhijit Gangopadhyay wants publicity. He wants fame. The CPM has no role now. They are not in the race. That is why he is trying for the BJP. He doesn’t have any trust in the West Bengal BJP. He doesn’t believe in Sukanta Majumder or Suvendu Adhikari.”
Ghosh accused the judge of being “anti-TMC” and stated, “If a bulldozer is required, the West Bengal government also has bulldozers. The corporation also has bulldozers. He is blindly and genetically anti-TMC. Sometimes CPM, sometimes BJP. He doesn’t want any respect. He is not willing to take any respect.”
Also, the TMC leader alleged that bulldozers deployed by the Government of UP led to the bloodshed of Dalits & Women.
Shishir Bajoria, BJP leader, reacted to the judge’s remark and stated, “It is very unfortunate that, once, it was said that what Bengal thinks today, India thinks tomorrow. But now Bengal is known for illegal work. Today it is very unfortunate that the Calcutta High Court has made the remark that if they don’t know how to restrict illegal construction, they have to hire bulldozers from Uttar Pradesh. This is so sad. The end of this government and Kolkata Municipal Corporation is near.”
Furthermore, he also slammed the Municipal Corporation of Kolkata and the TMC government in the state and stated that “In the Kolkata Municipal Corporation, many things are illegal. Rather, nothing is in a straight way. The ruling party is doing this.”
Meanwhile he added that, the mayor of Kolkata, Firhad Hakim stated that the corporation will “never support any kind of illegal construction” and that it doesn’t believe in the concept of bulldozing and “We believe in development.”
