• Mamata Banerjee skips Amit Shah's meeting

    Politics
    Mamata Banerjee skips Amit Shah's meeting




    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