West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday said she has urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to supply coronavirus vaccines to the state before the onset of the third wave. She said this after her meeting with the PM at 4pm, which lasted for around 30 minutes.
“It was a courtesy meeting with the PM after the recently held Assembly Polls in Bengal. I came to Delhi after two years….tomorrow I will have ‘chai pe charcha’ (discussion over a cup of tea) with Sonia ji. I also got an appointment to meet the President but the problem is they want the latest RT-PCR report of myself…though I completed by double vaccination but they (President’s office) are asking for the latest RT-PCR report… Delhi is like my home but I am an outsider here… from where I will get the RT-PCR report now. I think double vaccinated people or based on the latest RT-PCR report should allow one to meet him (President),” she said.
Mamata also said that “Prime Minister and I did not speak about the (West Bengal) electoral victory”.
During the meeting, Mamata requested PM Modi to increase the supply of vaccines and medicines before the third wave sets in. She told him that due to irregular supply of vaccines, it became difficult for her to plan vaccination for all at the earliest.
“I requested him to release more Covid-19 vaccines for West Bengal. I don’t have a problem on how many vaccines other states are getting, but I requested him to increase the supply as per the population of the state,” she said, while adding that the Prime Minister assured her that he will look into her demands.
West Bengal has started vaccination from January 16, 2021 and till date, it already administered more than 2.5 crore doses of vaccination (with nearly 1.81 crore of first doses and 0.70 crore as second dose) against supply of 2.12 crore doses from the Centre, 18 lakhs procured by state government and remaining by the private sectors.
‘Have to do planning for 2024 now’
On the issue of the Pegasus snooping scandal, which has disrupted Parliament Session, Mamata said the PM should call an all-party meeting. “There should be a Supreme Court-monitored probe in this matter,” she added.
On the 2024 elections, the Bengal CM said that a decision on a face for the polls is far away, but she hopes that the opposition works together. “Like-minded parties should work together…there should be no discrimination. We must begin early.”
About meeting the regional party leaders, she said, “There are many old friends and new friends and I will try to meet them tomorrow to discuss the 2024 Lok Sabha. We have to do the planning now.”
She also condemned ‘police harassment’ against TMC workers and Prashant Kishor’s I-PAC staff in Tripura.
Mamata is on whirlwind tour of Delhi for five days. Aiming for a larger role in the national politics after her resounding victory in the recently held West Bengal Assembly polls, Mamata also met former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Kamal Nath at 2pm and then headed for a meeting with Congress Rajya Sabha MP Anand Sharma. She will meet Congress Rajya Sabha MP Abhishek Manu Singhvi at 6.30pm.
Her Delhi visit and meetings with the opposition party leaders are being seen as the TMC’s efforts to expand its footprint in rest of the country to take forward its ‘Khela Hobe’ (let’s play) wave against BJP’s ‘Khela Sesh’ (game ends) jibe. This was the reason why the party decided to telecast her ‘Shahid Diwas’ (Martyr’s Day) speech on July 21 through giant screens in most parts of the country.
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