Digital Desk: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has
canceled her participation in a two-day brainstorming session convened by
Union Home Minister Amit Shah. The Union Home Minister is chairing the conclave
of all state Home Ministers, which began today in Haryana's Surajkund. In West
Bengal, Ms Banerjee is in charge of the Home portfolio.
Bengal is represented in the absence of the Chief Minister by
Niraj Kumar Singh, Assistant Director General of Police (Home Guard), and Ram
Das Meena, West Bengal Resident Commissioner.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will deliver a video message to the
Chintan Shivir tomorrow.
Kerala's Pinarayi Vijayan and Punjab's Bhagwant Mann are among
the Chief Ministers from opposition-ruled states attending the meeting. Bihar,
which has lately shifted sides, has sent its Director General of Police (DGP)
to the conference.
Apart from Ms Banerjee, other Chief Ministers who will not
attend the meeting include Janata Dal United's Nitish Kumar (Bihar) and the
DMK's MK Stalin (Tamil Nadu), all of whom have been pitching for a joint
opposition to unseat the BJP in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, as well as Biju
Janata Dal's Naveen Patnaik (Odisha).
The ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) in Bengal has accused the
Union Home Minister of usurping state government responsibilities and utilising
central agencies against ruling parties in opposition-ruled states. The TMC is
at odds with Mr Shah on a number of topics and has been outspoken in its
criticism of the Union Home Minister.
"It's festival season, and there are various events
planned. Bhai Phonta (Bhai Dooj) is on Thursday, and Chhat Puja is coming up
soon. The Chief Minister will be unable to leave the state. For the same
reason, our Home Secretary and DGP [Director General of Police] will not be
attending the Chintan Shivir ".
The event also includes state home secretaries, directors general of police (DGPs), and directors general (DGs) of central armed police forces and central police organisations. One of the concerns on the agenda is better collaboration between states and the centre.
The conference will also cover topics such as creating an ecosystem to combat cybercrime, modernising police forces, boosting the use of information technology in the criminal justice system, land-border management, and coastal security, among other internal security concerns.
The Central Government in the notice mentioned one or two notices which clearly
Continue Reading
