Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin on Saturday criticised the Central government following West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's assertion that she was unjustly interrupted during her speech at the NITI Aayog meeting.
In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Stalin questioned, "Is this #CooperativeFederalism? Is this the way to treat a Chief Minister? The Union BJP government must understand that opposition parties are an integral part of our democracy and should not be treated as enemies to be silenced. Cooperative Federalism requires dialogue and respect for all voices."
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'Stopped Midway In Speech': Mamata Baneerje
Banerjee, in Delhi, claimed that her microphone was cut off after just five minutes, while other Chief Ministers were allowed more time to speak. The central government, however, dismissed her allegations, stating that her allotted speaking time had concluded.
After walking out of the meeting, West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee said, "I have come out boycotting the meeting. Chandrababu Naidu was given 20 minutes to speak, CMs of Assam, Goa, Chhattisgarh spoke for 10-12 minutes. I was stopped from speaking after just five minutes."
"This is unfair. From the opposition side, only I am representing here, and attending this meeting because of the greater interest that cooperative federalism should be strengthened. Even Budget also... this is political biased Budget. I said why are you discriminating against other states. NITI Aayog has no financial powers, how will it work? Give it financial powers or bring back Planning Commission," she said.