Trinamool Congress Rajya Sabha member Jawhar Sircar, a retired Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer, on Sunday, announced his decision to resign from the Rajya Sabha as a protest against the ghastly rape and murder of a woman doctor of R.G. Kar Medical College & Hospital as well as the corruption in governance in West Bengal.
Sircar has communicated this decision to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee through a letter dated September 8, where he has also said that he has decided to quit politics for good.
Later he told a section of the media persons that he would formally tender his resignation to the Chairman of Rajya Sabha soon.
In his letter to the Chief Minister, Sircar pointed out that he decided to resign from the Rajya Sabha in 2022 after evidence of corruption against the former West Bengal Education Minister, Partha Chatterjee, surfaced. “I was harassed by a section of the party leadership. However, I refrained from resigning with a belief that you will continue with your moves against financial corruption,” Sircar pointed out in the letter.
He also said that the current mass movement throughout West Bengal on the R.G. Kar issue is because of the muscle flexing by a section of the pampered bureaucracy and corrupt persons.
“I have never witnessed such grievance and non-confidence against any government ever in my life. After carefully observing the sequence of events on the R.G. Kar issue for the last month a question came to my mind on why you are not directly interacting with the protesting junior doctors as you used to do before,” Sircar said.
He also said that the disciplinary measures being adopted by the state government now is a very late initiative and the situation in the health administration in the state could have been better had these disciplinary actions been taken much before.
“I personally feel that the current protests on this issue have been totally apolitical and spontaneous in nature. So it would be unfair to resist this movement by giving it a political tag. The movement is not just demanding justice for the victim but also against the state government and ruling dispensation," Sircar pointed out in the letter.
Till the time the report was filed, there was no reaction from Trinamool Congress on this count. However, the opposition party leaders have welcomed the decision of Sircar.
Sri Lankan Navy arrests 32 Tamil fishermen, five boats seized
The Sri Lankan Navy has arrested 32 fishermen from Rameswaram in Tamil Nadu for allegedly crossing the International Maritime Boundary Line (IMBL) and fishing in Lankan waters.
Mann Ki Baat: PM Modi hails ISRO's century in rocket launches, urges people to dedicate a day for science
Addressing the 119th episode of his monthly radio programme, 'Mann Ki Baat', on Sunday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi hailed the Indian Space Research Organisation, saying it has hit the century in space. Last month, the country witnessed the ISRO's 100th rocket launch.
Mizoram student stabbed to death in Kerala, batchmate arrested
A 22-year-old BTech student from Mizoram was stabbed to death near his college in Thiruvananthapuram. The deceased, Valentine, was a student at Rajadhani Institute of Engineering & Technology, Nagaroor.
Italy PM slams Left's double standards, says when Trump, Meloni, Modi talk, they are called threat to democracy
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has accused left-wing politicians of being "nervous" over former US President Donald Trump's victory, claiming that conservatives are unfairly labelled as a "threat to democracy" while leftist leaders are celebrated for similar global alliances.
NDRF intensifies rescue operation to save 8 trapped in Telangana tunnel
National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) teams on Sunday intensified rescue efforts to save eight persons trapped in an under-construction tunnel after a portion of its roof collapsed in Telangana’s Nagarkurnool district on February 22.
Israel delays Palestinian prisoner release after 'humiliating' hostage handovers
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced on Sunday that the release of Palestinian prisoners would be delayed until Hamas ceases its "humiliating ceremonies" during the release of Israeli hostages under the ceasefire deal.
PM Modi on 3-day visit to MP, Bihar, Assam from today
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Madhya Pradesh, Bihar and Assam from February 23 to 25 to participate in several developmental projects and inaugurate business summits.
US senators call out China for 'weaponising' UN 1971 resolution, vow support to Taiwan
The United States Senators accused China of subverting United Nations Resolution 2758 in an attempt to isolate Taiwan. The senators proposed a resolution in the Senate reaffirming US support for Taiwan. The resolution opposes China's attempt to prevent Taiwan's meaningful participation in international organisations.