Page 32 - Mamata Banerjee

Will launch protests if Bengal's dues not cleared in seven days: Mamata

West Bengal CM and Trinamool chief Mamata Banerjee on Friday gave the Centre a seven-day ultimatum to clear all dues failing which the party would launch a massive protest. Banerjee made these remarks during a programme at Raj Bhavan to celebrate the 75th Republic Day. Banerjee said, "If the central government does not clear the funds, then we (TMC) will initiate a massive protest." According to West Bengal government's figures, the Centre owes the state Rs 9,330 crore under the PMAY, Rs 6,900 crore under MGNREGA, Rs 830 crore under National Health Mission, Rs 770 crore under PM Gram Sadak Yojna, Rs 350 crore under the Swachh Bharat Mission, Rs 175 crore for mid Day Meals, as well as money under other schemes. Banerjee had met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on December 20, and discussed the issue of pending central funds. After the meeting, she said Modi proposed that officials from state and Centre can sit together and clear the issues. Earlier this week, a team of state governmen

Will start massive protest if dues not cleared by Centre in 7 days: Mamata

West Bengal CM and Trinamool chief Mamata Banerjee on Friday gave the Centre a seven-day ultimatum to clear all dues to the state failing which the party would launch a massive protest. Banerjee made these remarks during a programme at Raj Bhavan to celebrate the 75th Republic Day. Banerjee said, "If the central government does not clear the funds, then we (TMC) will initiate a massive protest." According to West Bengal government's figures, the Centre owes the state Rs 9,330 crore under the PMAY, Rs 6,900 crore under MGNREGA, Rs 830 crore under National Health Mission, Rs 770 crore under PM Gram Sadak Yojna, Rs 350 crore under the Swachh Bharat Mission, Rs 175 crore for mid Day Meals, as well as money under other schemes. Banerjee had met Prime Minister Narendra Modi on December 20, and discussed the issue of pending central funds. After the meeting, she said Modi proposed that officials from state and Centre can sit together and clear the issues. Earlier this week, a team of st

WB: CBI registers case on medical college admission on fake certificates

The case has been registered against unknown candidates, unknown officials of the West Bengal government and other unknown persons

Day after Mamata's vow to fight alone, Rahul says INDIA will fight 'anyay'

The Wayanad MP said that he is happy to have come to West Bengal

Amid discord in INDIA bloc, Cong's 'Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra' to enter Bengal

The Congress 'Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra,' led by Rahul Gandhi, is scheduled to enter West Bengal from Assam on Thursday, amid political ripples within the INDIA bloc alliance in the state. The Bengal leg of the Yatra will begin a day after Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee's announcement that her party will contest the upcoming Lok Sabha polls independently in West Bengal. Both Congress and the TMC are constituents of the INDIA bloc formed to take on the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance in the 2024 Parliamentary elections. The Yatra is scheduled to enter West Bengal through Bakshirhat in Cooch Behar district in the northern part of the state. Following a two-day hiatus on January 26-27, it will navigate through Jalpaiguri, Alipurduar, Uttar Dinajpur, and Darjeeling districts before entering Bihar on January 29. Re-entering West Bengal on January 31 via Malda, it will pass through Murshidabad, both Congress stronghold districts, before departing the state on February 1.

Bengal CM Mamata calls on Guv Bose, discusses state budget, other issues

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee met Governor CV Ananda Bose on Wednesday evening. The two leaders held discussions over several issues, including the budget session of the state assembly next month, Raj Bhavan officials said. "I am feeling pain, despite that I have come for the meeting. As per the verdict of the Supreme Court, we had a very good meeting. I will come again on January 26," Banerjee said, referring to the injury she received on her forehead after her car made a sudden halt to avoid a collision with another vehicle. She said the meeting was fruitful. Bose and the TMC government have been at loggerheads over various issues, including the appointment of vice-chancellors in state-run universities. The state government has been claiming that the governor's appointment of VCs was illegal as he did not consult the Education Department. The state government had moved the Supreme Court, which ordered the preparation of a final draft of the list of names proposed fo

Lok Sabha elections 2024: Big blow for INDIA bloc as AAP, TMC to contest without Congress

The Indian Opposition bloc cracks ahead of the Lok Sabha elections. After Mamata Banerjee, now Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann has ruled out an alliance between AAP and the Congress in the state.

Lok Sabha elections 2024: TMC to go solo in West Bengal; jolt to INDIA bloc

The Congress and the TMC are a part of the Opposition's INDIA bloc, a group of 28-non BJP parties, which aims to oust the Narendra Modi government in the Lok Sabha elections

SC adjourns hearing on bail plea of TMC leader Anubrata Mondal to Feb 27

The Supreme Court on Monday adjourned to February 27 the hearing on the bail plea moved by Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Anubrata Mondal, arrested in connection with a cattle-smuggling case. A bench of Justice Bela M Trivedi and Justice Pankaj Mithal, meanwhile, directed the lower court to proceed with the trial on February 22. During the hearing, senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, appearing on behalf of Mondal, submitted that four charge sheets have been filed in the case and everybody is out of jail except the TMC leader. He told the court that Mondal is in jail for one-and-half years while the main accused has got bail in the case. "There are 309 witnesses. I am the only person who is in jail while others have got bail," Rohatgi told the court adding that the trial is not progressing in the case. Additional Solicitor General S V Raju, appearing for the Central Bureau of Investigation, opposed the bail plea saying Mondol is a very influential person and added he was involved in ..

TMC govt refraining people from participating in Ram temple event, says BJP

The West Bengal BJP on Monday accused the TMC government of trying to refrain people from participating in the celebrations of Ram temple inauguration in various parts of the state, aligning with the consecration ceremony at Ram Mandir in Ayodhya. Former state BJP president and MP Dilip Ghosh, who began the day by offering puja at a temple in Kharagpur, said, "The 'Sampriti (harmony) Rally' by TMC is an attempt to mislead people". "As the country is celebrating the Ram temple inauguration, the TMC government in Bengal is trying to stop people from participating in such celebrations through the all-faith rally to be organised by the ruling party. We condemn such an attempt," he said. His remarks drew a sharp rebuttal from the TMC, which stated that its 'all-faith" rally has nothing to do with Ram temple inauguration. The consecration ceremony at the Ram temple in Uttar Pradesh's Ayodhya will be held on Monday with Prime Minister Narendra Modi performing the rituals. The Trinamool .

Kovind panel gets 21K responses, 81% 'affirm' idea of simultaneous polls

The committee on 'one nation, one election' headed by former president Ram Nath Kovind has received nearly 21,000 suggestions from the public out of which 81 per cent "affirmed" the idea of simultaneous polls, an official statement said on Sunday. The statement further said that suggestions were also invited from 46 political parties. "Till date, suggestions have been received from 17 political parties," it said. Various opposition parties, including the Congress and the TMC, have opposed the idea of holding simultaneous polls. On January 5, the panel had issued a public notice inviting suggestions from citizens for making appropriate changes in the existing legal-administrative framework to enable simultaneous elections in the country. The Kovind-led committee, which was constituted in September last year, held its third meeting on Sunday. "Altogether 20,972 responses were received out of which 81 per cent affirmed the idea of simultaneous election," the committee said after its

Ram temple event: TMC, BJP to test political might as politics heats up

Months before the Lok Sabha polls, the TMC and BJP in West Bengal will evaluate their political prowess on Monday, aligning with the Ram temple consecration in Ayodhya, with Mamata Banerjee slated to lead an "all-faith" rally seeking to project a counter-narrative to BJP's hindutva politics. The much-awaited Ram temple consecration will be held in Ayodhya on Monday, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi attending the rituals, following which the shrine will be opened for the public a day later. The TMC, which has accused the BJP of trying to politicise a religious event by attempting to put up a "gimmick show" ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, has announced to hold a mega all-faith harmony rally in the metropolis led by West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee. The party will also hold similar rallies in every block of the state. The Bengal BJP, which has unsuccessfully demanded that the day be declared a holiday in the state, along with several other Hindu outfits, has .

Mamata to take call on seat sharing, Cong unit cannot do bargaining: TMC

The TMC on Saturday said its supremo Mamata Banerjee will take the final call on seat sharing with the Congress in West Bengal for the Lok Sabha polls this year and asserted that "unjustified bargaining" cannot be done by the state unit of the grand old party. Based on the 2021 assembly poll results in the state, in which the Congress in alliance with the CPI(M)-led Left Front had fared badly, the Trinamool Congress top leadership offered the grand old party two seats, out of 42 Lok Sabha constituencies in West Bengal, in the coming general elections, its spokesperson Kunal Ghosh said. "The Congress state unit cannot do unjustified bargaining on the matter," Ghosh said. Meanwhile, All India Mahila Congress President Alka Lamba said in Siliguri that the party's leadership has been holding parleys with constituents of the INDIA bloc in different states, including in West Bengal, for seat sharing for the Lok Sabha elections. She said the process will be concluded soon. "Parleys are o

TMC slams Bengal BJP chief, demands apology for remarks against Mamata

The TMC on Thursday called for an unconditional apology from West Bengal BJP president Sukanta Majumdar, alleging obscene remarks towards West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and contending that his comments exemplified the chauvinistic mindset of the saffron camp. The TMC's reaction was triggered by Majumdar's recent use of the term 'Dhanda' about Banerjee during a media interaction. In the course of the exchange, Majumdar made derogatory comments about the chief minister's attire, specifically targeting her "sari.". Majumdar's exact words were, "The Chief Minister claims that she does not take CM's salary and her pension as MP. Then where does money for her iPhone and her designer saris come from? And nowadays, if someone gives something for free, he will not give it without his 'dhanda' (own interest).". On Thursday, the TMC launched a scathing rebuke against the BJP, condemning the lewd and offensive remarks made by Sukanta Majumdar. They demanded an unequivocal apology fr

Train services affected as protestors block railway tracks in Jalpaiguri

Train services were affected as members of the All Kamtapur Students' Union (AKSU) blocked the railway tracks in West Bengal's Jalpaiguri district on Friday morning to press for their demand for a separate state. The blockade at the Betgara station in the New Jalpaiguri-New Bongaigaon section of the Northeast Frontier Railway began at 7 am, officials said. The blockade has disrupted train services on the all-important route. Among the trains affected were the New Jalpaiguri-Guwahati Vande Bharat Express, they said. Officers of the RPF and the state police were talking to the protestors, and trying to persuade them to remove the blockade, they added. The protesters said the blockade would continue till 7 pm, but railway officials said they were hopeful of an earlier resumption of services. The protesters raised slogans against both the TMC and BJP for not fulfilling their demand. The AKSU is the students' wing of the Kamtapur People's Party United, which is agitating for a separat

Ram temple LIVE: Ram Lalla idol placed in 'Garbha Griha' in Ayodhya

Ayodhya Ram Mandir News Live Updates: Catch all the latest updates on the run-up to the the 'Pran Pratishtha' ceremony

Cong turns to civil groups to train cadre; allies hesitant to join Rahul

The BJA, a union of activists and civil society outfits, is currently assisting the Congress in organising the Gandhi-led Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra

ED conducts raids at seven places in Kolkata in Bengal school jobs scam

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday started conducting raids simultaneously at seven places in and around Kolkata in connection with its probe into the alleged irregularities in recruitment in schools of West Bengal, a senior officer said. Raids are being held at the residences and offices of those who allegedly "acted as middlemen" in the scam, he said. "These middlemen used to collect money and transfer it to various addresses. We are conducting raids at residences and offices used by them," the ED officer told PTI. Accompanied by a huge number of central forces, the ED officers started search operations at New Town and Nayabad on the eastern fringes of Kolkata, he said. Family members of the alleged middlemen are being questioned, he said, adding that ED officers are yet to enter one of the offices of a middleman since it was closed.

LIVE: Understand action taken in self-defence, says govt on Iran's strikes

Catch all the latest updates LIVE from across the globe here

Ram mandir inauguration: Mamata to lead religious harmony rally on Jan 22

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said that on January 22, she will hold a rally from Kali Mandir, following which an interfaith rally will be held