Bhopal, March 7 Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav strongly condemned the alleged violation of protocol in West Bengal regarding the welcome of President Droupadi Murmu on Saturday, and demanded an apology from Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.
A controversial situation arose during President Murmu's visit to West Bengal when the state government, led by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, allegedly failed to follow the protocol, Yadav said in a statement.
When President Murmu arrived in Bidhannagar near Siliguri on March 7 to address a gathering of tribal people, neither the chief minister nor any other minister was present to welcome her, he said.
Yadav said that Chief Minister Banerjee's behavior during President Murmu's visit to Bengal is completely unacceptable.
"The position of the President, who holds the highest position in democracy, is above politics for all of us. At a time when the President is on a state visit, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee should have taken full care of the President's dignity," he said.
Describing it as an example of a "despicable mentality," Yadav said that creating any situation that disrespects the position of the President of India in the world and hurts his or her dignity is unbecoming of a chief minister of any state.
"I strongly condemn this. It is sad that the President's visit is being dragged into local and party politics, making it a part of petty politics, which is an example of a despicable mentality.
"I hope that Mamata Banerjee will take this matter seriously and apologize immediately. The situation that has arisen is extremely shameful for the Bengal government," he added.
