BJP Leader Says He’ll Hug CM Mamata If Infected With COVID; Complaint Filed

Kolkata: The Trinamool Congress has registered a complaint against BJP national secretary Anupam Hazra for saying that he would hug West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee if he is infected with COVID-19.

“Our workers are fighting a bigger enemy than corona. They are fighting Mamata Banerjee. When they (BJP cadres) have been able to fight it out against Mamata Banerjee without a mask, they think they can also fight against COVID-19 without wearing a mask. I have decided that if I get infected with the coronavirus, then I will go and hug Mamata Banerjee,” Hazra said at a party programme in South 24 Parganas district on Sunday evening.

A former Trinamool Congress MP, Hazra joined the BJP last year.

“We have lodged a police complaint against Anupam Hazra. We have urged the police to take immediate action against him,” a senior Trinamool leader from Siliguri was quoted as saying by PTI.

Hazra defended his statement by saying that Mamata, too, had made several controversial remarks against Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the past.

The state BJP leadership distanced itself from Hazra’s. “We don’t support such comments. We should avoid making such remarks,” a state BJP leader said.