New Delhi: The Chief Executive Officer of NITI Aayog, B.V.R. Subrahmanyam, addressed claims made by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee that her microphone was muted during her speech at the NITI Aayog meeting. Subrahmanyam clarified that each Chief Minister was allocated a designated speaking time, which was displayed on screens at their tables, and that the allotted time for the West Bengal CM had simply ended.

During a press conference after the meeting, Subrahmanyam explained that Banerjee had requested to speak before lunch, a request that was accommodated. “The Chief Minister of West Bengal requested to be given a turn before lunchtime. I’m just putting facts on the ground, no interpretations. It was a clear request from their side because normally we would have gone alphabetically, starting with Andhra Pradesh, then Arunachal Pradesh. We adjusted, and the Defence Minister called her in just before Gujarat. So, she made her statement,” he said.

He added that every Chief Minister was given seven minutes to speak, with a countdown clock displayed. “Every Chief Minister is allotted seven minutes, and there’s a clock on top of the screen that shows the remaining time. It goes from seven to six to five to four to three. At the end, it shows zero. Nothing else happened. Then she said she would have liked to speak for more time but chose not to. That was it. We all heard her points respectfully, and they will be reflected in the minutes. The Chief Secretary continued to attend the meeting even after she left to catch a flight to Calcutta,” Subrahmanyam added.

Subrahmanyam also mentioned that Chief Ministers from ten states and Union Territories did not attend the meeting. “We had 10 absentees and 26 participants. Absentees included Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Telangana, Bihar, Delhi, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, and Puducherry. The Chief Minister of West Bengal was present,” he said.

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman also dismissed Banerjee’s claim, stating that every Chief Minister was allotted their due time to speak. “CM Mamata Banerjee attended the NITI Aayog meeting. We all heard her. Every CM was given their allotted time, displayed on the screen before each table. It’s completely false that her mic was turned off. Every CM was given their due time to speak,” she told the media.

Sitharaman described Banerjee’s claims as “unfortunate” and stated that the government was pleased with Banerjee’s participation, where she spoke on behalf of the opposition. “It’s unfortunate that the Chief Minister of West Bengal, Mamata Banerjee, has claimed that her mic was switched off, which is not true. We’re happy she participated in this meeting, presented her case for West Bengal, and spoke for the opposition. But even as she did so, we adhered to the procedure,” Sitharaman said.

She further remarked that Banerjee could have requested more time instead of using the issue as an excuse to leave the meeting. “If reminded that her time is over, she could have requested to continue speaking like other Chief Ministers did. Instead, she used it as an excuse to leave the meeting. She should speak the truth rather than build a narrative based on falsehood,” Sitharaman added.

The official PIB Fact Check Twitter account explained that Banerjee’s turn to speak was scheduled before lunch upon request, deviating from the alphabetical order. “Alphabetically, CM West Bengal’s turn would have come after lunch. She was accommodated as the 7th speaker on an official request from the West Bengal government as she had to return early,” PIB Fact Check tweeted.

Speaking to reporters, Banerjee alleged “political discrimination” and claimed she was not allowed to speak for more than five minutes while other Chief Ministers were given more time. “I said the central government should not discriminate against state governments. I wanted to speak, but my mic was muted. I was allowed to speak only for five minutes. People before me spoke for 10-20 minutes,” Banerjee told reporters after storming out of the NITI Aayog meeting.

“I have come out boycotting the NITI Aayog meeting. Chandrababu Naidu was given 20 minutes to speak, Chief Ministers of Assam, Goa, and Chhattisgarh spoke for 10-12 minutes. I was stopped after just five minutes. This is unfair,” she said.

Claiming she participated in the meeting to strengthen “cooperative federalism,” Banerjee stated, “There are many regional aspirations. That is why I am here, to share those aspirations. If a state is strong, the Union will be strong.” She also mentioned that several states, including West Bengal, were deprived of funds in the Union Budget presented in Parliament this week.

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