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Mamata Banerjee to reach Delhi today; will meet PM Modi this week
Mamata Banerjee’s relations with the Centre remain frosty in the aftermath of a series of confrontations including a bitter electoral battle followed by alleged post poll killing and rape of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) workers and supporters, and questioning of governor’s office.
Chief minister Mamata Banerjee will be arriving in Delhi on Monday, her first trip to the national capital after returning to power in West Bengal for the third consecutive term. The Trinamool Congress supremo is scheduled to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi later this week during the visit. With the monsoon session going on, Banerjee is also likely to visit the parliament and meet several political leaders during her stay.
“I am going to Delhi for two to three days. I didn’t go to Delhi after coming to power for the third time because of Covid. I had sought an appointment with the Prime Minister, and he has given me time. I will also try to meet the President. This apart, several political leaders have requested that they want to meet me. I would try to adjust and accommodate as far as possible in two to three days,” Banerjee had said on Thursday while announcing her Delhi trip.
This will be the first meeting between Modi and Mamata after the two met for 15 minutes in the aftermath of Cyclone Yaas. The centre-state relation then nosedived as the Union government recalled Alapan Bandyopadhyay, the then chief secretary of the state, for skipping the PM’s review meeting.
Banerjee’s relations with the Centre remain frosty in the aftermath of a series of confrontations including a bitter electoral battle followed by alleged post poll killing and rape of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) workers and supporters, and questioning of governor’s office, to name a few issues. Banerjee’s recent appeal to unite opposition to oust the BJP from the seat of power in Delhi in 2024 underlines the political friction between the two parties. Banerjee’s party has also hit out at the Centre over the Pegasus snooping row, which continues to rock parliament.
“Journalists, political opponents, members of the judiciary, cabinet colleagues... now, not even the ARMY spared. There is no ambiguity here. This is a CRIME. Who is responsible? #Pegasus Discuss this in #Parliament today. PM-HM must answer,” tweeted Derek O’Brien, TMC Member of Parliament (MP) and the leader of the party in the Rajya Sabha.
The Trinamool Congress had earlier alleged that Abhishek Banerjee, TMC’s national general secretary and CM Mamata Banerjee were spied upon using Pegasus malware before the West Bengal Assembly elections.
Last week, Banerjee had demanded that the Prime Minister and Union home minister explain in the parliament if the Central government had a hand in the alleged snooping on prominent politicians, activists, journalists and ministers using a spying malware made by an Israeli company.
The BJP however mounted a counter-attack saying that the TMC wanted to divert attention from a report filed by the national human rights body which slammed the state government for post poll violence.
“The NHRC report has unmasked the government and all its lies are now out. In a bid to divert the attention the TMC is now raising such allegations. But this won’t stand,” said Samik Bhattacharya, BJP spokesperson in West Bengal.
