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Waited for ‘sufficient time’ after speaking to CM before visiting Jadavpur University: Governor

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Kolkata: West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankar on Friday justified his visit to Jadavpur University to rescue Union minister Babul Supriyo, saying he waited for “sufficient time” after speaking to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and left for the institute after “the situation did not show any change”.

Supriyo was on Thursday heckled and gheraoed by a section of students at the university, where he had gone to attend a programme by Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), affiliated to RSS, prompting the governor to visit the university.

After being held up at the university campus by protestors from leftist students unions and some from TMC for nearly five hours, Supriyo was taken out by the governor late Thursday evening.

State education minister and TMC secretary general Partha Chatterjee had claimed that Dhankar visited the varsity without informing the government. He accused the governor of adopting a “partisan approach” in blaming the West Bengal government for the ruckus.

Describing TMC secretary general’s statement as “unfortunate”, Dhankar, who is also the chancellor of the university, said, “Obviously he (Chatterjee) did not know of the developments between the governor and the DGP/CS as also the conversation with the CM. The (TMC’s) stand in the release is factually incorrect,” he said.

He expressed relief that his visit to the university brought an end to the “unwholesome situation”, an official statement said.

“Before his visit to the university, the governor exhausted all possible avenues that could bring an end to the unsavoury spectacle by flagging the issue to the DGP and the chief secretary. As a final step, he apprised the chief minister (who was in Delhi) of the grave situation and the consequences it may entail.

“There were many telephonic interactions between the two and he would not like to divulge the conversation between the two, except that he left for the place after sufficient time had elapsed and the situation did not show any change,” the statement issued by Raj Bhavan said.

“The Governor is conscious of his oath of office whereby he undertakes to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution and the Law, and also to devote himself to the service and well being of the people of the state,” the statement further stated.

“In discharge of his duty both as Chancellor of the University and as the Governor, he felt it necessary to visit the University and all agencies required to be kept in the loop were informed,” it added.

The governor also took serious note of the fact that Vice Chancellor Suranjan Das left the campus in the evening, even as the Union minister of state for forest, environment and climate change remained gheraoed by the students.

He described the incident of students demonstrating in front of his car on the university campus as an failure on part of the state police.

“It’s an apparent failure of the state police administration in attending to the situations appropriately,” the statement added.

Dhankar had faced demonstrations by the agitators — members of Left-leaning organisations and the Trinamool Congress Chhatra Parishad – when he visited the campus, following the assault on the Union minister of state for Environment, Forest and Climate Change.

He and Supriyo, however, managed to leave the campus with police escort, even as the protest continued till late in the evening.

According to university sources, the vice chancellor was admitted to a city hospital after he complained of headache, vertigo, palpitation and nausea. (PTI)

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