Eagerly waiting to attend Kali puja at Mamata's residence: Guv

Barasat: West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar on Saturday said Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has invited him and his wife to her south Kolkata residence on the occasion on Kali puja and he was "eagerly waiting" to be a part of the celebrations.

ALSO READ: BJP legislative party meeting starts; no swearing-in ceremony on Saturday

Dhankhar, while inaugurating a kali puja marquee at a club in Barasat, North 24 Parganas district, maintained that he was more than happy to have got the invitation for the puja - held every year at the CM's Kalighat residence since 1978.

"I had written to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee that I and my wife wanted to be at her residence on the occasion of Bhai Dooj. The chief minister, after coming back from her North Bengal tour, wrote back inviting me and the First Lady to be a part of Kali puja at her residence.

"We are very happy to get her invitation and are eagerly waiting to attend the puja. Hopefully, I don't need to answer any other questions," Dhankhar told reporters here.

ALSO READ: AIMIM’s victory in Kishanganj dangerous for Bihar: Giriraj

Incidentally, a controversy had erupted on Friday after a TMC leader, who is also the chief patron of the Barasat club, stepped down from the post over the decision to invite Dhankar.

Sunil Mukherjee, chairman of TMC-run Barasat Municipality, said he was unhappy with the club's move as the "governor had a bias against the state government".

Dhankhar, who took oath as the governor of West Bengal on July 30, had been at loggerheads with the state government over several issues -- ranging from his seating arrangement at the Durga Puja carnival to security upgrade -- since he rushed to Jadavpur University on September 19 to "rescue" Union minister Babul Supriyo, who was being "heckled" by a section of students.

ALSO READ: Cong, JDS voice strong reservation against inking RCEP deal

(PTI)