Army deployment: Pained at allegations, says Parrikar; Mamata hits back

Ajay Banerjee

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, December 9

Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar has shot off a letter to West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee saying he is “deeply pained” at the allegations made against the Army, saying the forces were “apolitical”.

Banerjee and her party members in a series of tweets had alleged that the Army had carried out its movement without any sanction from the state government. The country-wide exercise was to keep a count on movement of heavy vehicles on December 1 and 2.

Parrikar in his letter written on Thursday cited the allegations made by the West Bengal Chief Minister and reported in the media and told her, “Your allegations in this regard run the risk of adversely impacting the morale of the country’s armed forces, which is not expected from a person of your standing and experience in public life.”

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Parrikar reminded Banerjee that there was extensive correspondence between the Kolkata-based Eastern Command of the Army and the state government.

The Defence Minister said the Army was one of the most disciplined institutions of the country. “The country is proud of their professionalism and apolitical conduct,” Parrikar said, adding that political parties had the luxury of making wild and unsubstantiated allegations but one must be careful when referring to armed forces.

Parrikar said the Army was forced to go public with the correspondence after allegations.

Doesn't behove you, says Mamata

Later in the day, Banerjee said in her response to Parrikar that she took “strong exception” to his “wild assertion”.

In response, Banerjee said her complaint was against the government policy, not the army.

"My complaint was not against the army. It was against your government and the government policy, as they act under your directions. We have great respect for their nationalism and professionalism," Mamata said in a strongly worded two-page letter to Parrikar.

She also said she was surprised at how the television media got the Defence Minister's letter even before she did. She also claimed that she  had "never seen such political vendetta by misusing the role of an esteemed organisation" in her administrative career.

"I take strong exception to your wild assertion that my articulation of the rights of the state government vis-a-vis army deployment without clearance has impacted the morale of the armed forces.”

"Your general observations about political parties and politicians to have the luxury of making wild and unsubstantiated allegations may be apt for your party, but we do not belong to that group," she said.

Banerjee claimed that Parrikar in his letter "chosen to convey the laughable idea” that he was the “sole spokesperson on behalf of the people at large".

"I don't think that it behoves a minister of the Union government to pass near defamatory remarks on a chief minister of any state and I trust that you will rectify this attitude," she said. (With PTI inputs)