In what is being viewed as an attempt to build her clout in trans-Bengal politics with national ambitions, Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has accepted an invitation to deliver a speech in Delhi Assembly.
Banerjee has “responded positively” to an invitation by her Delhi counterpart Arvind Kejriwal. “I will go there. They have invited me for a workshop in Delhi Assembly,” Banerjee who earlier met Aam Aadmi Party leader Somnath Bharti at her office in Kolkata said.
Among other issues, Banerjee is likely to dwell on what she earlier termed as Central interference in State affairs. The Bengal Chief Minister has recently been vocal against Prime Minister Narendra Modi following a Niti Aayog decision to depute officers at State Treasuries and BDO offices, apparently to monitor expenditure, particularly of those funds released by the Centre.
When asked whether the continuing attack by the Chief Minister would hamper Central assistance to Bengal, State Education Minister Partho Chatterjee said, “The Modi Government is cutting funds, crippling out people-oriented projects. It thinks that the funds belong to the BJP. But for their information the money belongs to the people who have every right to ask why they are being deprived of what is rightfully theirs. So whatever Mamata Banerjee is saying is correct.”
Meanwhile, in an unrelated development the Chief Minister has appealed to the people not to support the general strike on September 2 called by the central trade unions and got her Government to issue circular threatening pay-cut if the Government employees absented from work.
“In view of the call given by different trade unions for strike all over the country on September 2, it has been decided that all the State Government offices including those provided with grants-in-aid by the State Government would remain open and all employees should report for duty on that date,” a Government memorandum said adding “it has also been decided that no leave shall be granted to any employee on the shutdown day the day prior to it (September 1), and the next working day (September 5).
