'West Bengal Targeted By Centre To Get Political Mileage': CM Mamata Banerjee At Meet With PM Modi

West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee, while speaking to PM Modi, alleged that the centre was targetting her government to get political mileage in the state.

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New Delhi: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee was clearly not in the mood to hold back her critique while speaking to PM Narendra Modi during the video conference meeting. On Monday, the Prime Minister held a meeting with chief ministers of all states and union territories to discuss the strategy ahead for fighting the Coronavirus pandemic in India and the future of the nationwide lockdown. CM Mamata Banerjee, while speaking to PM Modi, did not shy away from calling out his government with an allegation when she said, "We are together in this crisis, however, somehow West Bengal has been targeted by the central government to get political mileage." She also questioned the point of extending the lockdown by saying, "when Government of India has opened almost everything including the opening of land borders, starting trains & opening airports, then what is the point in continuing with the further lockdown." For the uninitiated, the central government has at several points pulled up the Mamata Banerjee-led West Bengal government by accusing them on not implementing lockdown norms seriously. Previously, her government was questioned about what is being done to punish the lockdown violaters. Recently, Home Minister Amit Shah had written a strong-worded letter to Banerjee where he accused her government of not granting necessary permissions to allow trains to carry migrant labourers of West Bengal back to their home state. Shah stressed that the state government is not coordinating with the Centre. Mamata Banerjee and BJP at the centre have always been at the opposite ends and clearly, the Covid-19 crisis has done nothing in easing tensions between the two. Meanwhile, the West Bengal CM has asked for a special economic package from the Centre and sought assistance to bring back all Bengal migrant labourers stranded in various parts of the country. (With agency inputs) Also Watch: Meeting of PM Modi with CMs conclude