One nation, one poll: Mamata Banerjee, Chandrababu Naidu to skip PM’s meet today

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YSR Congress chief and new Andhra Pradesh CM Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy will attend the meeting, it is learnt. Reddy is likely to raise the issue of special status to his state issue again if he gets a chance with Modi.

In a letter to Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi, West Bengal Chief Minister Banerjee, who has been on a warpath with the Centre, having earlier skipped the Niti Aayog meeting on June 15, wrote that it is difficult to take a call on such a crucial matter on such a short notice.

The Centre, she wrote, should issue a white paper on the issue.

Banerjee wrote: “…a proper response on such a sensitive and serious subject like “One Country and One Election” in such a short time would not do justice to the subject it deserves. The matter requires consultations with constitutional experts, election experts and above all party members. Instead of doing the matter hurriedly, I would like to request you to kindly circulate a White Paper on the subject to all political parties, inviting their views by providing adequate time. If you will do so, we will be able to give concrete suggestions on this important subject.”

Unlike Banerjee, both Naidu and Rao had friendly ties with Modi, before the TDP chief, then the CM of Andhra Pradesh, had a fallout with the Centre over the special status package issue and pitched for an alliance of anti-BJP parties in the Lok Sabha polls. The TRS and BJP have drifted apart, with Rao having often blamed the Modi government for not following the spirit of cooperative federalism and blaming the BJP leadership for ignoring demands of non-BJP states.

The meeting on “one nation one poll” was proposed by Modi at Sunday’s all-party meeting ahead of the Parliament session.

On the issue of “aspirational districts”, the Bengal CM wrote in the letter to Joshi that her government is in favour of ensuring socioeconomic development of all districts uniformly rather than singling out a few as “aspirational”. This, she asserted, takes away from the overall objective of achieving balanced development.

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“Aspirational districts” were designated as such during the previous Modi government.

The Bengal government, Banerjee added, will “wholeheartedly participate in the most befitting manner” in the 150th birth anniversary celebrations of Mahatma Gandhi, as also celebrations of 75 years of Indian independence.

The issue of improving productivity of Parliament is the remit of the Parliamentary Affairs Ministry and her party will agree with whatever is decided in consultation with other political parties, the TMC chief wrote.

Banerjee’s letter comes days after she boycotted a Niti Aayog meeting called by Modi on June 15.

“Given the fact that the Niti Aayog has no financial powers and the power to support state plans, it is fruitless for me to attend the meeting of a body that is bereft of any financial powers,” she had then written to Modi.

Banerjee had also skipped the swearing-in ceremony of the new Council of Ministers after initially accepting the invite.