Kolkata, Sept 11: Adhir Ranjan Choudhury, a Congress leader, has raised questions regarding West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s attendance at the G20 dinner hosted by President Droupadi Murmu in New Delhi.
Choudhury, who serves as the state Congress president in West Bengal, expressed his objections, suggesting that Mamata’s participation weakens her stance against the Narendra Modi government.
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Choudhury remarked, “Nothing would have happened if she hadn’t attended the dinner. The sky would not fall. Mahabharata would not have become impure. The Quran would not have been impure.”
He also questioned whether there might be another reason for Mamata Banerjee’s participation in the event. He pointed out that at the dinner table, the Chief Minister of Bengal sat beside Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath and Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
Mamata Banerjee had originally planned to fly to Delhi on Saturday, but her flight was rescheduled to Friday afternoon due to flight operation regulations in and around Delhi.
Adhir Choudhury also noted that many non-BJP Chief Ministers chose not to attend the dinner event, but Mamata Banerjee arrived in Delhi earlier than expected.
TMC Rajya Sabha MP Santanu Sen responded to Choudhury’s comments, stating that he should not lecture her about administrative protocols. Sen emphasized that Choudhury does not have the authority to decide when the chief minister of the state should attend a dinner as part of the protocol.
Sen further stated that everyone is aware of Mamata Banerjee’s role as one of the architects of the Opposition’s INDIA bloc, and her commitment cannot be questioned.
Several opposition leaders, including Nitish Kumar from Bihar, Hemant Soren from Jharkhand, and Mamata Banerjee from West Bengal, attended the gala event. However, leaders from opposition parties who did not attend the event included Chhattisgarh CM Bhupesh Baghel, Rajasthan’s Ashok Gehlot, Odisha’s Naveen Patnaik, and Delhi’s Arvind Kejriwal.
