The Opposition said on Monday that the mounting corruption charges against leaders of the ruling Trinamool Congress had forced Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the first time since he assumed office last May.
The Communist Party of India (Marxist) and the Congress alleged that the meeting came after the CBI arrested several TMC leaders in the Saradha scam case.
Talking to journalists here, senior CPI(M) leader Md. Salim wondered whether Ms. Banerjee sought an assurance from Mr. Modi that she would not be summoned by the CBI.
Mr. Salim denied Ms. Banerjee’s claim that she met the Prime Minister to press for the development of the State. If so, why did not she attend the NITI Aayog meeting, he asked. The Chief Minister and the Prime Minister’s Office should make public what transpired at the meeting, he said.
Pradesh Congress Committee president Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said: “As the danger of the dubious deposit-seeking companies such as the Saradha Group and Rose Valley is increasing, the Chief Minister thought fit to reach a direct understanding with the Prime Minister.”
BJP State president Rahul Sinha, however, denied the allegations. “The question of what transpired at the meeting should be put to Mr. Salim, as these days the TMC and the CPI(M) have become close friends,” he told journalists.
He denied Ms. Banerjee’s claim that Mr. Modi had praised her government’s performance, saying there was no sign of it in the State.
