Bulldozers cannot be the language of governance: Mamata

Kolkata: Former CM Mamata Banerjee said on Sunday that "bulldozers cannot become the language of governance" in her first public statement after Trinamool's election defeat."Bulldozers cannot become the language of governance in a state built on culture, compassion and resistance to oppression. A govt that demolishes first and listens later has forgotten the very spirit of Bengal," Banerjee said in a post on X.Targeting what she called the human cost of the new govt's early actions, she said: "What we are witnessing is an attack on the dignity of daily wage workers, street vendors, small shopkeepers and struggling families.""The massive eviction drive around Howrah station, the unrest in Tiljala and Park Circus, and the growing desperation among those stripped of shelter and livelihood expose a govt more obsessed with optics than humanity. The land of Tagore and Netaji cannot be ruled through fear, force and demolition drives," she added.Since the electoral defeat, Banerjee has held a series of closed-door meetings with her social media teams, MPs, defeated candidates, legal team members and, on Sunday, zilla parishad office-bearers.She has also appeared in the Calcutta High Court to legally represent displaced party workers, and told workers unwilling to stay in the party "to go" — saying those who remain are the "pure gold" she is looking for.Trinamool has dispatched fact-finding teams across districts to probe the reasons behind its defeat and to support workers allegedly targeted by the BJP.