‘Each CM was given due speaking time’: Nirmala Sitharaman refutes Mamata Banerjee’s allegations

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday rejected West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s claim that her microphone was switched off while she was speaking at the NITI Aayog meeting and said every chief minister was given “appropriate time to speak”.Speaking to reporters, the West Bengal chief minister alleged “political discrimination” and said that during the NITI Aayog meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, she was not allowed to speak for more than five minutes while other chief ministers were given more time.

“CM Mamata Banerjee attended the Niti Aayog meeting. We all heard her. Each CM was given their allotted time and it was displayed on the screen, which was present in front of each table. We could see that two tables had a screen in front of us. She said in the media that her microphone was switched off. This is completely false. Each CM was given their due time to speak,” the Finance Minister told ANI.

Sitharaman said it was “unfortunate” that the West Bengal Chief Minister made such statements, adding that the government was happy that the West Bengal Chief Minister attended the meeting and she said she was speaking on behalf of the opposition, i.e. the INDIA bloc.

“It is unfortunate that West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee claimed that her microphone was switched off, which is not true, and it is unfortunate because we are happy that she participated in this meeting. She presented her case, spoke on behalf of West Bengal and, as she said, on behalf of the entire opposition. But even while she was doing that and we were hearing her, as per the procedure.”

Sitharaman added that the Bengal chief minister should have asked for more time than was allotted but chose to use it as an excuse to walk out of the meeting. “If she is reminded that her time is up, even with the mic on, she could have asked to continue speaking like other chief ministers have done. But she chose to use it as an excuse so that she could walk out of the meeting,” Sitharaman said. “She should tell the truth behind all this rather than constructing a narrative based on lies again,” the finance minister added.

Meanwhile, Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said he thought Mamata Banerjee was lying as it was surprising that the CM of a state was not allowed to speak.

“The things Mamata Banerjee is saying about the NITI Aayog meeting, I feel she is lying. It is very surprising that the CM of a state is not allowed to speak. Mamata Banerjee knew what would happen there. She had the script,” he said.

Earlier, the central government’s fact-checking agency had refuted as “misleading” the West Bengal CM’s claim that his microphone had been switched off.

A fact check by the PIB today denied his claims, stating that “only the clock indicated that his time was up.”

“It is alleged that the microphone of the West Bengal CM was switched off during the 9th NITI Aayog Governing Council meeting. This claim is misleading. The clock only indicated that his speaking time was over. Even the bell did not ring to mark it,” the Press Information Bureau (PIB) said in a message on X.

According to government fact-checking agency PIB, Mamata Banerjee’s turn to speak would be after lunch if we go by alphabetical order, but she was “accommodated” as the seventh speaker at the official request of the chief minister.

“In alphabetical order, West Bengal CM’s turn should have come after lunch. She was accommodated as 7th speaker on the official request of West Bengal government as she had to return earlier,” PIB Fact Check explained in a later tweet.

Speaking to reporters, the West Bengal chief minister alleged “political discrimination” and said that during the NITI Aayog meeting, she was not allowed to speak for more than five minutes while other chief ministers were given more time.

“…I said you (Central government) should not discriminate against state governments. I wanted to speak but my mike was cut off. I was allowed to speak only for five minutes. The people before me spoke for 10-20 minutes,” Banerjee told reporters after storming out of the NITI Aayog meeting today.

“I was the only one from the opposition who attended, but still, I was not allowed to speak. It is insulting…,” Banerjee said as she left the meeting midway.

“I came out to boycott 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 5 minutes. This is unfair,” the chief minister said while speaking to reporters after the meeting.

Saying that she chose to attend the meeting to strengthen “cooperative federalism”, Banerjee said: “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.”

The chief minister said several states, including West Bengal, were deprived of the Union Budget presented in Parliament this week.