West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee made headlines as she walked out of a NITI Aayog meeting in Delhi, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, citing a lack of opportunity to voice her concerns. Banerjee expressed frustration over being allotted only 5 minutes to speak while others had up to 20 minutes, emphasizing that despite being the sole opposition representative present, she was not given a fair chance to address the gathering. The TMC leader accused the central government of discrimination against state governments and highlighted what she saw as political bias in the Union Budget.
The NITI Aayog's ninth Governing Council meeting, presided over by Prime Minister Modi, aimed to discuss development issues and policy matters, with participation from various state chief ministers. Sources revealed that BJP-ruled states' chief ministers were instructed to showcase their administration's achievements and assess the performance of different government departments and schemes. Several Opposition CMs, including Tamil Nadu CM MK Stalin, Kerala's Pinarayi Vijayan, and Punjab's Bhagwant Mann, chose to boycott the meeting, along with Congress CMs and Puducherry's Chief Minister N Rangasamy.
Mamata Banerjee's stance against the NITI Aayog and her call for reinstating the Planning Commission intensified on July 26, echoing her discontent with the public policy think-tank introduced by the Modi government. The incident at the NITI Aayog meeting sheds light on the political tensions and disagreements between the central government and opposition leaders, reflecting broader debates on governance, representation, and decision-making processes in India.