MEA doesn’t discriminate between states, Vande Bharat for all stranded Indians: spokesperson

This development comes at a time when differences between the Centre and West Bengal government over trains over bringing migrants from different parts of the country have come out in the open.

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A senior Trinamool Congress leader and Minister in West Bengal government Partha Chatterjee has accused the Ministry of External Affairs for discriminating against West Bengal and not for giving enough repatriation flights to Kolkata, an allegation refuted by the Ministry.

“Is the MEA asking us to believe that there are enough people to come from Georgia to Gujrat but none want to come to Kolkata? Also,there are enough people to come back to Bihar from Kyrgyzstan but not enough to bring back to Bengal? Stop this injustice! Mr Chatterjee who is secretary general of Trinamool Congress said late on Thursday. The Minister also shared a list of the cities to which international flights from different parts of the world will arrive.The list had no mention of  Kolkata.

The MEA’s spokesperson responded to the tweet by the Bengal Minister by saying that the Ministry does not "discriminate,” “MEA does not discriminate between states. GOI’s Vande Bharat mission is for all stranded Indians, including those from West Bengal. Over 3700 of them have registered from different parts of the world,” MEA Spokesperson Anurag Srivastava tweeted.

This development comes at a time when differences between the Centre and West Bengal government over trains over bringing migrants from different parts of the country have come out in the open. On Friday, the State’s Home Department also took the micro blogging site sharing letters written by the State government to the Centre on the return of Indian nationals from the State stranded abroad. 

“GOWB keen to welcome back our people stranded in different countries and has long back communicated its agreement as well as quarantine arrangements details etc to GOI for special international inbound journeys. Letters attached. Bengal awaits flights,” the Home Department of the State government tweeted a letter written by State’s Chief Secretary to Union Home Secretary. The MEA spokesperson responded by saying that the Ministry welcomes the willingness of West Bengal government and awaiting  “confirmation of modalities to be followed upon arrival of passengers at Kolkata Airport”.