<div>A day after slamming Narendra Modi as "Butcher of Gujarat", the Trinamool Congress on Monday (28 April) demanded that the Gujarat Chief Minister should apologise publicly or face a defamation case for questioning the sale of Mamata Banerjee's painting.<br /><br />"Either he has to prove this (charges on sale of paintings) or apologise publicly for this. Otherwise we will file a defamation case against him," Trinamool Congress general secretary Mukul Roy told reporters here.<br /><br />Modi, at a rally in Srirampore yesterday, had said, "Your (Mamata) paintings used to be sold for Rs 4 lakh, Rs 8 lakh or Rs 15 lakh, but what is the reason that one of your paintings sold for Rs 1.80 crore. I respect art. But who was the person who bought the painting for Rs 1.80 crore".<br /><br />"Who all have bought her paintings, for what price they bought it, suddenly how they found out your talent, this the people of Bengal want to know," he had said.<br /><br /><img width="200" height="200" align="right" src="/image/image_gallery?uuid=770d923b-c76b-4f0c-91aa-9f167b128800&groupId=36166&t=1398675483163" alt="" />Roy said the party has written to the Election Commission complaining that such "unsubstantiated" allegations are a violation of the model code of conduct.<br /><br />"Someone whose hands are blood-stained in Gujarat riots is doubting the integrity and sincerity of our leader and making personal attacks," he said.<br /><br />State finance minister Amit Mitra said all money raised from the sale of paintings have either gone for charity purposes or funding the party's mouthpiece 'Jago Bangla'.<br /><br />"Modi has made a very low level of personal attack on her. By going to the lowest denominator he has changed the political discourse in the country," he said.<br /><br />(PTI)</div>
_20240616110604_original_image_15.webp)
