Take immediate steps to prevent violence: WB Governor

Kolkata, Jan 13 (PTI) Adopting a pro-active approach,West Bengal Governor M K Narayanan today summoned ChiefSecretary Samar Ghosh and asked the state government to takeimmediate steps on maintaining law and order and preventviolence.

Home secretary G D Gautama and DGP N Mukherjee werealso present at the 30-minute meeting.

Gautama later told reporters at Writers'' Building thatthe Governor reviewed law and order and asked the governmentto immediately take steps to prevent recurrence of violenceand concentrate more attention on maintaining law and order.

The Governor, shortly after suspected CPI(M) armedcadre gunned down seven villagers at Netai village in Lalgarhon January seven, had said it was a day of "sorrow and shame"for the state.

"No democracy can allow such violence: no civilisedsociety can tolerate such wanton disregard for human lives andno state can accept such mindless discord," he had said in astatement.

Narayanan was briefed about measures by the state tocurb growing violence, Gautama said.

"The Governor cited no specific issues or incidentsand held a general review of the law and order situation inthe state," he said.

The meeting came close on the heels of Chief MinisterBuddhadeb Bhattacharjee''s reply to Union Home minister PChidamabaram''s letter on January seven "to reschedule allappointments and visit Delhi immediately".

"We are trying to fix up two meetings with the HomeMinister and Prime Minister between January 17 and 19," theCM''s secretariat had said on January 12.

Earlier, the chief minister had said that he would beable to visit Delhi only in the third week of this month.

Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee had also said thatthe killings and political clashes taking place in the stateevery day were "totally unacceptable".