PM Modi changes schedule to meet Mamata Banerjee in Kolkata

New Delhi, March 16: Are Prime Minister Narendra Modi and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee set to meet again soon?

According to reports, Modi is scheduled to meet Banerjee during his first visit to Kolkata after taking over as the prime minister later this month.

The two leaders had met here on March 9 and they spoke on the issue of state's development. Banerjee had said after the meeting that the prime minister had praised Bengal's fiscal discipline and she had invited him to visit Kolkata. It was the first time in almost 10 months that Banerjee met the prime minister for substantial talks.

According to a report published in Anandabazaar Patrika, Modi was first set to visit Kolkata in April during the occasion of Ramnavami. Later, it was decided that the visit would take place in late March.

It was said that the prime minister wanted to meet Swami Atmasthananda, the ailing chief of the Ramkrishna Math and Mission, but according to close sources, Modi wanted to ensure that CM Banerjee is in station when he arrives in Kolkata.

The emphasis on the chief minister's presence was so high that the prime minister changed the date yet again from March 24/25 to March 26 after the Prime Minister's Office came to know that the chief minister will not be in Kolkata on March 24 and 25 as she is scheduled to visit North Bengal during that time.

However, the question that still looms is whether Banerjee will personally receive the prime minister on his visit to Kolkata, as per the protocol.

Both the Trinamool Congress and BJP are hoping that the working relation between Banerjee and Modi improves, although the state is all set to go to the civic polls where both the parties will be eager to prove their strength over the other.

Oneindia News