'Insult To Bengal': Mamata Banerjee Says Her Mic Was Shut At Niti Aayog Meet, Govt Rebuts Claim

West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee walked out of the ongoing NITI Aayog meeting in New Delhi, accusing that her microphone was deliberately switched off when she started speaking about the allocation of funds for the state.

“…I was speaking, my mic was stopped. I said why did you stop me, why are you discriminating. I am attending the meeting you should be happy instead of that you are giving more scope to your party your government. Only I am there from the opposition and you are stopping me from speaking…This is not only the insult of Bengal but also of all regional parties…” she alleged.

Banerjee said she was the only opposition voice at the meeting but claims she was still not given proper time while other speakers before her spoke for 10-15 mins, including Andhra Pradesh CM Chandrababu Naidu who she said spoke for around 20 minutes.

“I don’t have any problem with them giving special attention to some states. I asked why were they discriminating against other states. This should be reviwed. I am speaking for all the states. I said that we are the ones who work while they only give directions,” she said.

The chief minister said that the move is an insult to all the regional parties, and she walked out of the ongoing meeting. She further said that she will never attend any NITI Aayog meeting in future.

Banerjee further said, “I was the only one from the Opposition ruled states who had gone there. They should have given me 30 minutes…At the beginning of the meeting, Rajnath Singh said that everyone should present their views in 5-7 minutes but I was not even given 7 minutes to speak. Their people were given 20 minutes, they got special packages and privileges but others got 0 minutes. I did the right thing by boycotting the meeting. I will not let them insult Bengal. I stand strongly with the Opposition parties running the government in other states.”

Meanwhile, the government in a statement said it is a misleading claim by the CM that her microphone was switched off. “Claim that microphone of West Bengal CM was switched off during the meeting correct. The clock only showed that her speaking time was over. Even the bell was not rung to mark it. Alphabetically, her turn would have come after lunch. She was accommodated as the 7th speaker on an official request of West Bengal government as she had to return early,” the PIB  said in a post on X.

“Maybe she wanted the allotted time of all opposition CMs, claiming she as the only opposition face present at the meeting. The same is not possible. NITI Aayog meeting has a format. The meeting has a specific agenda,” the government sources said.

The BJP also reacted to Banerjee’s action and said that some people from opposition have made NITI Aayog a platform to boycott. BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawala said Banerjee was in competition with the Congress to politicise every platform through the politics of opposing everything. Banerjee had earlier said she will leave the meeting if she was not allowed to put across her point of view there.

Union minister Pralhad Joshi also condemned Banerjee’s act. “I have not seen what has happened in the (NITI Aayog) meeting. I can only say this so-called INDI alliance is not at all an alliance because Mamata did not give a single seat to Congress in West Bengal. They are not able to digest the mandate of the people, they are crying foul,” he said to ANI.

According to the sources, the Trinamool Congress (TMC) would protest inside and outside the Parliament during the ongoing Monsoon session over the insult of the state and its chief minister.

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman accused Bengal CM Banerjee of spreading falsehood. Taking to her official X account, she said, “We all heard Hon. CM @MamataOfficial. She spoke her full time. The screen in front of our tables kept showing the time. A few other CMs spoke beyond their allotted time. On their own request, extra time was allowed without any fuss. Mikes were not switched off, not for anybody, particularly, not for CM, WB. Mamata ji has chosen to spread falsehood.”

“I was happy she attended. Was happier when she said she is speaking for Bengal and in fact for the entire opposition. I may agree or disagree with what she had to say. But now with her saying baseless things outside, I can only conclude that she is making an effort to keep I.N.D.I alliance happy,” she added.

Union Minister Sukanta Majumdar strongly condemned Bengal CM’s walkout and called it ‘pre-planned.’ Taking to X, he said, “So the walkout by CM @MamataOfficial was pre-planned. It’s sad that a CM, who could have spoken for the people of Bengal, chose drama over substance in Delhi. This shows she is not serious about the needs of Bengal and is only interested in theatrics.”

Prime Minister Narendra Modi was chairing the ninth governing council meeting of NITI Aayog on Saturday, to discuss making India a developed nation by 2047 on agenda.

Several opposition-ruled states’ chief ministers, including Tamil Nadu’s MK Stalin, Himachal Pradesh Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, decided to give it a miss as a mark of protest against the Union budget which, they alleged, was “anti-federal” in spirit and “extremely discriminatory” towards their states.

Defying the opposition alliance’s stand, Banerjee had decided to attend the meeting. She said that she would join the meeting and use the opportunity to register her protest against a “discriminatory budget” and the “conspiracy to divide West Bengal and other opposition-ruled states”.

“The attitude of their ministers and BJP leaders is such that they want to divide Bengal. Along with economic blockade, they want to impose a geographical blockade. Different leaders are giving different statements to divide Jharkhand, Bihar, and Bengal. We condemn this. We want to record our voice and I will be there to do so,” Banerjee had said.

Before the meeting started, Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren also did not turn up for the meeting, leaving only Banerjee as the opposition voice at the meeting.

She had also called out the scrapping of public policy think-tank brought by the Modi government and restoring the Planning Commission. “Since the NITI Aayog has been planned, I have not seen a single work being done because they don’t have any power. Earlier, there was a Planning Commission. As a chief minister… at that time I saw there was a system. I will raise my voice that stop this NITI Aayog. They do not have any financial power. They cannot do anything, only hold meeting once a year to show their face. Please bring back the Planning Commission again,” Banerjee said,” she said.

The council with prime minister as the chairperson, comprises of all state chief ministers, lieutenant governors of Union Territories, and several Union ministers.

(With inputs from Aman Sharma)

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