BJP asks Mamata to 'respect federal structure', attend PM's meet

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Saturday criticised West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee for her decision to not attend the chief ministers (CMs)' meet called by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday even as it asked her to rise above "partisan politics " for the development of her state.

Maintaining that she should forget political differences in matters of development, BJP Secretary Shrikant Sharma said Modi's priority was the progress of the entire country and Mamata should not drag politics into it. "The meeting (of CMs) is development-oriented. Modi believes India will develop only when its states develop. She should respect our federal structure and participate in the meeting forgetting party politics, " he told reporters in reaction to reports that the West Bengal chief minister is going to stay away from the consultation.

The TMC supremo's decision to skip the meeting follows increasing belligerence by her party against the BJP as the saffron outfit tries to corner her over probes into the Saradha chit fund scam and Burdwan blast.