India

Centre Disputes Mamata Banerjee’s Claim Of Being Muted At Key NITI Aayog Meeting

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has alleged “political discrimination” during a key NITI Aayog meeting in Delhi, intended to allow states to present their concerns to the Prime Minister. Banerjee was the sole Chief Minister from a non-BJP-ruled state to attend the meeting, as other INDIA bloc leaders boycotted the event.

After abruptly leaving the meeting, the Trinamool chief claimed her microphone was muted, and she was given only 5 minutes to speak, while others were allowed 10-20 minutes. “I said the Centre shouldn’t discriminate against state governments. I wanted to speak, but my mic was muted. I was allowed to speak only for 5 minutes, while people before me spoke for 10-20 minutes,” Banerjee told reporters. “I was the only one from the opposition participating, yet I was not allowed to speak. This is insulting,” she added.

Despite the INDIA bloc Chief Ministers boycotting the meeting, Mamata Banerjee had intended to address the ‘political discrimination’ against Bengal in the Union Budget.

Also read: J&K Police Offer Rs 5 Lakh Reward For Information On Terrorists In Doda

The Centre, however, refuted Banerjee’s claims, stating that her microphone was not muted. “It is being claimed that the microphone of CM, West Bengal, was switched off during the 9th Governing Council Meeting of NITI Aayog. This claim is misleading. The clock only showed that her speaking time was over. Even the bell was not rung to mark it,” the Press Information Bureau said in a post on X (formerly Twitter).

Other opposition leaders, citing the ‘raw deal’ they received in the Union Budget, refused to attend. Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin initiated the boycott, followed by Congress-ruled states like Himachal Pradesh’s Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu, Karnataka’s Siddaramaiah, and Telangana’s Revanth Reddy. Additionally, the Aam Aadmi Party-led Punjab government under Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, as well as the Chief Ministers of Jharkhand and Kerala, Hemant Soren and Pinarayi Vijayan, also decided to skip the event.

Kavya Bhatt

Recent Posts

Tata Group Chairman N Chandrasekaran Optimistic About India’s Growth

Tata Group Chairman N Chandrasekaran expressed confidence that despite a moderation in India’s growth this…

53 seconds ago

India’s Petroleum Demand Set To Grow, But Oil Companies Face Margin Pressure, Fitch Says

India’s petroleum product demand is expected to rise by 3% to 4% in the financial…

15 mins ago

Yuva Chetna Hosts Grand Makar Sankranti Celebration In Ballia, Draws Over 10,000 Attendees

A grand Makar Sankranti celebration organized by Yuva Chetna at the Ballia Maldepur turn witnessed…

36 mins ago

Malaika Arora Kicks Off 2025 With Glimpse Of First Working Day

Malaika Arora recently gave her fans a peek into her first working day of 2025,…

45 mins ago

Acharya Pramod Krishnam Celebrates 60th Birthday With Grand Celebrations At Kalki Dham

The 60th birthday of Acharya Pramod Krishnam, the Peethadheeshwar of Shri Kalki Dham in Sambhal,…

56 mins ago

UPI Sets Record With Surge In Transactions In December 2024

In a remarkable milestone for India’s digital payments ecosystem, Unified Payments Interface (UPI) transactions hit…

1 hour ago