West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee met Prime Minister Narendra Modi at his residence in New Delhi on Tuesday afternoon. This is the first time the two leaders have met since the Assembly elections in Bengal where Banerjee led her Trinamool Congress to power for the third time in a row.
Talking to reporters after the meeting, she said the prime minister should convene an all-party meeting to discuss the Pegasus snooping scandal and order a Supreme Court-monitored probe into it.
Last week, an international media consortium reported that over 300 verified mobile phone numbers, including those of two ministers, over 40 journalists, three opposition leaders besides scores of businesspersons and activists in India, could have been targeted for hacking through the Pegasus spyware of the NSO Group.
The West Bengal government has already ordered judicial probe into the controversy after several leaders from the state, including Banerjee's nephew Abhishek Banerjee, were allegedly named in the list of potential targets.
The chief minister said she discussed the Covid situation, the supply of vaccines to the state and also a proposal to rename Bengal as Bangla during her meeting with the prime minister.
Banerjee is in the national capital on a five-day visit and scheduled to meet President Ram Nath Kovind on Wednesday. She is also slated to meet Congress president Sonia Gandhi.
The Trinamool Congress chief, who apparently seeks to play a larger role in the national politics prior to the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, has already met a few Congress leaders including Kamal Nath and Anand Sharma.
"We have not discussed any strategy. That will be discussed by the leader of our party. We just discussed the current situation and the issue of rising prices," Kamal Nath said.
During their meeting, Sharma is reported to have told her that there cannot be a non-BJP front without the Congress as it is a national political party with a pan-India presence.
Banerjee is likely to meet leaders of other opposition parties as well during her Delhi trip which comes amid the Monsoon session of Parliament.
Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar said he is likely to meet the West Bengal CM on Wednesday. "She called me last week and told me about her visit to New Delhi and her willingness to meet. I think we are likely to meet tomorrow in New Delhi,” he said on Tuesday.
This is Banerjee's first visit to Delhi after after leading her party to power in West Bengal for the third time in a row.
