Govt misusing central troops: Mamata to PM

Central forces sent to Lalgarh to assist the West Bengal government in curbing the Maoists are being used against Opposition workers, Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee told Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Thursday.

Central forces sent to Lalgarh to assist the West Bengal government in curbing the Maoists are being used against Opposition workers, Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee told Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Thursday.

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Banerjee, who is upset she wasn’t consulted before central paramilitary forces were sent, told the PM that those behind the violence in Lalgarh were actually rebel CPI-M workers branded by the state government as “the Maoists.”

Though the meeting was related to the presentation of the Railway Budget on July 3, Lalgarh figured prominently in discussions, Trinamool Congress leaders said. Banerjee reportedly wants the Centre to keep a close watch on the happenings in the state.