West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee walked out of the ongoing NITI Aayog meeting in New Delhi today, accusing the organizers of deliberately switching off her microphone when she began speaking about the allocation of funds for her state.
“I was speaking, and my mic was stopped. I asked 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,” Banerjee alleged.
The Chief Minister asserted she was the sole opposition voice at the meeting but claimed she was not given adequate time, unlike other speakers before her who spoke for 10-15 minutes, including Andhra Pradesh CM Chandrababu Naidu, who she said spoke for around 20 minutes.
Banerjee described the incident as an insult to all regional parties and declared she would not attend any future NITI Aayog meetings. She further emphasized that her exclusion from speaking time was particularly egregious given her early departure request, which had been officially approved.
Union government sources denied Banerjee’s allegations. They claimed, “The microphone of West Bengal CM was not switched off during the meeting. The clock merely 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 the West Bengal government as she had to return early.”
The sources also suggested that Banerjee might have wanted the speaking time allotted to all opposition CMs, which they stated was not feasible given the structured format and specific agenda of the NITI Aayog meeting.
Reacting to Banerjee’s walkout, BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawala accused some opposition leaders of using the NITI Aayog as a platform for boycotts. He stated that Banerjee was attempting to politicize every platform through a strategy of opposing everything, in competition with Congress.
Banerjee had previously indicated she would leave the meeting if she was not permitted to present her viewpoints. According to sources, the Trinamool Congress (TMC) plans to protest inside and outside Parliament during the ongoing Monsoon session over the perceived insult to the state and its chief minister.
The ninth governing council meeting of NITI Aayog, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, aimed to discuss making India a developed nation by 2047. Several opposition-ruled states’ chief ministers, including Tamil Nadu’s MK Stalin and Himachal Pradesh’s Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, boycotted the meeting in protest against what they termed as an “anti-federal” and “extremely discriminatory” Union budget.
Defying the opposition alliance’s stance, Banerjee had chosen to attend the meeting, intending to use the platform to protest against the “discriminatory budget” and the “conspiracy to divide West Bengal and other opposition-ruled states.”
Before the meeting, Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren also did not attend, leaving Banerjee as the lone opposition voice. Banerjee had previously criticized the NITI Aayog, calling for the reinstatement of the Planning Commission, which was scrapped by the Modi government. She argued that the NITI Aayog lacked financial power and effectiveness.
The NITI Aayog’s governing council, chaired by the prime minister, includes all state chief ministers, lieutenant governors of Union Territories, and several Union ministers.
