‘Can’t ask mosquitoes to bite less’: Bengal BJP minister triggers row

Kolkata: West Bengal minister Agnimitra Paul has triggered a fresh controversy with her remarks on the state’s worsening mosquito-borne disease situation, saying a change in government cannot stop mosquitoes from biting people.

Paul, who handles the urban development and municipal affairs portfolios, said mosquitoes could not simply be controlled and that the government would have to take stronger measures to tackle the situation.

The remarks came as dengue cases have surged across West Bengal, with more than 4,000 infections and seven deaths reported in recent weeks. Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari met officials earlier this week and said the situation remained under control, adding that the number of cases was about half of last year’s figure.

State Health Minister Sharadwat Mukherjee has meanwhile urged schools to allow students to wear clothing that fully covers their arms and legs during the dengue season.

Paul’s latest comments drew sharp criticism, including from former Rajya Sabha MP Jawhar Sircar, who accused the minister of repeatedly making insensitive remarks.

Sircar recalled a video from last week showing Paul confronting a homeless woman who was heating milk for her baby on a pavement in Kolkata’s Park Street area. Paul had questioned why the woman had no home and why she was raising a family on the pavement. In the presence of police officers, she subsequently asked the woman to remove her belongings from the roadside.

The episode had already faced widespread criticism on social media. Paul’s latest remarks on the dengue situation have now intensified scrutiny of the minister, with critics accusing her of making statements that appear dismissive of public concerns during a health crisis.