In a first CM Mamata Banerjee to present State's Budget, Oppn threatens to boycott session

On Friday, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee will present state budget. This is first time in West Bengal that a budget will be presented by a chief minister. Eventually, this is last budget of TMC (Trinamool Congress) during second term, before assembly elections. It is believed that being last budget many big anuncements can be made for people of state by  CM.

Usually, Budget is read by Finance Minister, but due to health issues, State finance minister Amit Mitra will t attend assembly sessions. Bengal FM Mitra who is currently under medical supervision has urged West Bengal goverr Jagdeep Dhankhar and speaker of legislative assembly Biman Banerjee to let chief minister Mamata Banerjee read out financial statement.

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On Thursday, Dhankar anunced on Twitter that he has authorised Banerjee to perform all duties in assembly related to presentation of annual financial statement for 2021-22 and motion for vote on account.

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Vote on Account

Vote on Account is interim permission granted for seeking sanctions on administrative expenditure — an elaborate financial statement of expenditure and receipts. Though budget anunces a plan for full year, because of assembly elections this year, approval will be sought over next three months in form of Vote on Account.

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Opposition boycotts Session

Meanwhile, opposition parties Congress and Communist Party of India (Marxist) have decided to boycott session on Friday as a mark of protest.  Abdul Mannan, Veteran Congress leader and leader of Opposition in assembly said that ruling party is trying to suppress opposition. issues raised by us are t discussed and our questions are t being answered. We are t allowed to speak. 

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Political exodus triggers TMC 

In run-up to polls, Trinamool Congress has witnessed a massive political exodus with several of its key leaders and heavyweights jumping ship to BJP. In latest, 5 former leaders joined  BJP in presence of Home Minister Amit Shah at his residence in Delhi on January 31. Rajib Banerjee, Baishali Dalmiya, Prabir Ghoshal, Rathin Chakraborti, and Rudranil Ghosh who recently left Trinamool, accompanied by BJP leaders Kailash Vijayawargiya and Dilip Ghosh, took a plane to Delhi to get formally inducted after Shah postponed his 2-day visit to West Bengal. After ir entry, TMC-turned-BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari, who was one of first to incite a rebel within party, said that by February 28, ' one will be left in TMC'. West Bengal Assembly with 294 seats will go to polls in April-May 2021.

(with ANI inputs)