Powers being seized by a section, may lead to presidential form of govt: Mamata Banerjee

West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee said on Sunday that all democratic powers have been seized by a section of people which would subsequently lead to the presidential form of governance and urged the judiciary, including Chief Justice of India UU Lalit, to "save democracy".

Justice Lalit, who attended the 14th convocation ceremony of the West Bengal National University of Juridical Sciences (WBNUJS) in Kolkata on Sunday, told law graduates to have compassion on people and society and give back to society more than what they received.

"As a lawyer, one never ceases to be a student of the law. Keep your mind open to every suggestion, that's where you will be drawing great inspiration. As a professional, as an academician and as a judge, one keeps learning every passing day and year, but the foundation is there in law school," Justice Lalit told the law graduates.


Calcutta High Court Chief Justice Prakash Srivastav, Chief Justice of Bangladesh Hasan Foez Siddiquie, many senior judges and law graduates were present. Banerjee urged the senior judges to uphold the federal structure in the country without naming any political party or the Centre.

Meanwhile, senior advocate and Rajya Sabha CPM MP Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharya said: "Why is the CM talking about respect when her party is associated with corruption in connection with scam?"