Mamata blames media owners, opponents for negative state image

Kolkata, Sep 24: Faced with criticism over Saradha chit fund scam and other issues, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today berated a "section of media owners" and "political opponents" for harming the state's interests by projecting it in a negative light.

She regretted that ever since the Trinamool Congress came to power, it had been trying to rebuild Bengal from the 'ruins' left by the previous government, but a "vilification campaign" had been launched to undermine the efforts.

"Standing on ruins we started rebuilding Bengal from scratch. In the last three years we have done a lot of work and we want to do more. But narrow political mentality and narrow personal interests of a section of media owners who launched one-sided canards are coming in the way," Banerjee said.

She targeted the opposition parties CPI(M), Congress and BJP for "opposing and insulting" the government, saying "their real intention is to stall the development of the state and kill democracy".

The chief minister, writing in the party mouthpiece Jago Bangla's Puja edition, which was launched at a function today, likened the constant criticism of the "state and the people" to the proverbial cutting the same branch of the tree over which they are sitting.

"The fact is that they are thinking that by resorting to denigration and false campaign, they can control the government or control different government organs through blackmailing. But they are forgetting that ours is a Ma, Mati, Manush government. Here people's word is the last word", Banerjee said.

Coming back to her gripe against media owners, she said, "There is a limit to everything. We who are in public life do have the same limit. In the name of media, those who sell news of canards, they should also have limits.

"If a common man commits wrong, that is an offence. Likewise, if the section which is engaged in the (media) business deceive the people and break the laws by indulging in lies and canards and think themselves to be self-declared big God in society, why they should not be equally guilty in the eye of the law?" she wondered.

PTI