Sovan resigns as minister

TT, Calcutta: Sovan Chatterjee, minister in-charge of two key departments, fire and emergency services and housing, resigned from the state cabinet on Tuesday and is expected to step down from the post of mayor of the Calcutta Municipal Corporation on Wednesday.

"Sovan has resigned as a minister… He had tendered resignation on a few occasions earlier. His resignation has been accepted this time," said Mamata Banerjee while leaving Nabanna on Tuesday evening before adding that urban development minister Firhad Hakim will look after both the departments.

"He has been asked to resign from the post of mayor as well," she added.

While the chief minister made it clear that Hakim will take over the departments, it is still not clear who will replace Sovan at the red building at the heart of the city.

A long-time associate of Mamata, Sovan -- whom she fondly calls Kanon -- has been one of the most powerful ministers in her cabinet till a few months ago as he was also incharge of the environment department.

The chronology of events at the state Assembly and then at the state secretariat on Tuesday made it clear that the bond between the two ­ Mamata had fondly recalled several times in the past that Kanon had been by her side since the days when he was a "thin boy" ­ had suffered a jolt.

Multiple sources said that Sovan first handed over his resignation letter to the chief minister around 3pm at her chamber at Nabanna after Sovan Chatterjee on Tuesday they attended a programme flagging off 50 fire tenders.

"But the chief minister refused to accept it.... Sovan then handed over his resignation to the principal secretary of the chief minister, Gautam Sanyal. Even before he could leave Nabanna, the chief minister called him to her chamber and told him that he was being relieved from the council of ministers," said a senior Nabanna official.

Now that the resignation has been forwarded to the gov- ernor, a formal notification will be issued to notify Hakim's taking over the charge of the two additional departments.

Sovan, a source said, faced the chief minister's wrath multiple times. The first blow to Sovan was dealt in the Assembly on Tuesday morning. The chief minister publicly expressed her dissatisfaction with Sovan's reply -- in response to a question -- when he said that 25 lakh people were given dwelling units.

An angry chief minister rose and informed the House that the number of beneficiaries is 40 lakh.

Soon after this, the chief minister apparently pulled up Sovan for not concentrating enough on his department's activities after calling him over at the chamber of the Speaker Biman Banerjee, a source said.