Chandrima Bhattacharya is not just West Bengal minister of state of health and family welfare, who also oversees other portfolios in the state government, she is also an important frontline leader for the All India Trinamool Congress.
DH approached Bhattacharya in Kolkata on Wednesday when she was participating in a 48-hour dharna organised by the women's wing of the party to protest the release of the 11 convicts in the Bilkis Bano rape case. While discussing pressing issues faced by the state, and the nation in general, Bhattacharya told DH that Mamata Banerjee was the ideal prime ministerial candidate. She also talked about the corruption charges against her party and how that affected the party's morale. Here are a few more excerpts from the interview:
For an issue with national ramifications, why are party supporters protesting in Kolkata?
Issues must be first raised in the state. We are trying to send this message to New Delhi, and all other parts of the country. It's not only the Bilkis Bano case. In our state, too, a woman has faced atrocious behaviour in Bagda, that too from BSF jawans. Every protest starts in states, and then goes outside (national). At a later stage, we will proceed with what our leaders suggest, and in accordance with the directives of our chairperson, Mamata Banerjee.
The Trinamool is facing corruption charges. What is being done to tackle this situation?
To call someone corrupt is of no use. They (opponents) have to prove it. It's only for humiliation. It's for humiliating one before the family. By calling someone a thief one doesn't turn out to be a thief. It has to be proved, and for those who say so, the onus lies on them to prove someone a thief.
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One of your portfolios includes refugee rehabilitation work. It's claimed that the Citizenship (Amendment) Act will provide rights to refugees. Why is the reservation against this legislation?
The refugee rehabilitation department is, in fact, headed by the chief minister. They (refugees) are already citizens of India. Those who are talking about CAA, and NRC (National Register of Citizens), ask for votes (from refugees, now settled). If they are not citizens, how can they vote? They are already citizens of our state. Attempts are made to make them understand things in a different way. This is to draw attention and to get votes. They (who favour CAA) want to misinterpret everything but have failed to do so.
The government in Bihar has changed. How is the party interpreting this development?
In Bihar, they have done it the way they wanted. The BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) however, is trying to attack every state that it doesn’t rule. They try to destabilise democratic governments. We have seen it in Maharashtra. But this is not the way. You have to gain the confidence of the people at large, and then you come to power.
Is Mamta Banerjee the prime ministerial candidate for the Opposition?
I don't have the right to say what the Opposition will do. But we, the Trinamool, think that she is the proper prime ministerial candidate, who will be able to unite the nation—people of all creeds and castes. That is what our Constitution says.