Mamata accuses CPI (M) of foisting emergency in Bengal

     Kolkata: Trinamul Congress leader Mamata Banerjee today said she would not bow down to any strongarm tactics by the CPI(M) ahead of the forthcoming Assembly elections in West Bengal. She was reacting to the arrest warant against her by the Barasat district court in North 24 Parganas district. The Barasat court has issued the arrest warrant in connection with a 1994 case regarding a clash between police and Trinamul Congress workers. Mamata Banerjee was asked to appear in court in connection with the case in Oct, 2005. The court finally issued the arrestwarrant when she failed to appear before it.

    "The CPI(M) can kill democracy in West Bengal. We feel we are citizens of India, if the Constitution is changed and democratic rights curtailed then we will think. But the Constitution gives democratic rights to the people. We feel if people are in trouble we have the right to stand by them and if CPI(M) feels that such opposition can be curbed by creating emergency like situation then we can only say that we fight for the people," she said. "If they feel that they can arrest the opposition leaders and finish the people's revolution then they can keep their jails ready. We want to see whether CPI(M)'s suppression is stronger than people's rights. All this conspiracy is because of the forthcoming polls. These cases have been prepared by the police suo moto on instructions of the CPI(M)," she added. Banerjee, however, said the matter was part of the CPI(M) game plan to gag all opposition in the state ahead of the elections. She said she was neither scared nor planned to surrender before the court. She said the CPI(M) wanted to suppress all voices raising issues like unemployment or handing over of land to building consortiums by depriving poor farmers. Before Mamta Bannerjee, arrest warrants were issued against Narayan Biswas of CPI(M) and Adhir Choudhury of Congress(I).