No problem NIA probing Burdwan blast, says Mamata Banerjee

Faced with a barrage of criticism over her government’s handling of the Burdwan blast, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today said she had no problem with the NIA probe since “terrorists are terrorists”, but only wanted the Centre to consult the state before taking any decision. In her first statement over the October 2 blast, Banerjee said “we want the truth to come out” and warned the BJP, without naming the party, against linking the incident with religion. “Criminals are criminals. They do not have caste, creed or religion. Terrorists are terrorists and there can be no compromise with terrorism,” Banerjee told a press conference at the party headquarters after a party meeting attended by MPs, ministers and MLAs. [caption id=“attachment_1714299” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Mamata Banerjee. AFP.[/caption] Mamata had earlier expressed reservation over the Centre’s decision ordering a NIA probe into the blast, in which terror links are suspected, suo motu without informing the state government. “We want that there should be discussion,” she said, adding that central agencies always had to depend on the local police. “The incident should be looked at seriously,” she said, adding that the state police was helping the NIA in the investigation. She said she had no complaint about the ongoing NIA probe into the incident and took a potshot at the media for interpreting a recent Facebook comment by her as one on NIA. “I had posted a Facebook post. Nowhere did I mention NIA. But media kept saying my post was about NIA,” she said responding to the question. The Chief Minister praised the state police for handling the case. “It was Ashtami (the second day of the just-concluded four-day Durga Puja festival) when the Burdwan incident took place. Lakhs of people were celebrating Durga Puja. Our police managed the situation well.” PTI