In normal course, the controversy should have ended with Alapan.s resignation on May 31, but the PMO was adamant to teach both Alapan and through him Mamata a big lesson of defying the centre. Alapan was asked to send his reply within three days- by next Thursday and all the focus of the bureaucrats throughout the country has shifted on speculating what will be the nature of his reply and what action, the centre will be taking after that.

The development came after the Department of Personal Training (DoPT) controversially recalled the top officer to be present at the North Block on Monday morning just few days after it had approved a three-month extension of his tenure.

But soon after the fiasco over the PM’s review meeting for which the centre and the Bengal government gave differing versions, the DoPT invoked rule 6(1) of IAS (Cadre) Rules, 1954 to recall Bandyopadhayay to Delhi creating a confrontationist situation in a period when both the CM and the CS are involved in combating the twiin challenges from Yaas cyclone and covid pandemic..

Banerjee had earlier announced that despite the DoPT’s order, the state government would not be releasing Bandyopadhyay. She wrote a five-page letter to the Prime Minister, refusing to comply with the Centre’s order. “The government of Bengal cannot release, and is not releasing, its Chief Secretary at this critical hour, on the basis of our understanding that the earlier order of extension, issued after lawful consultation in accordance with applicable laws, remains operational and valid,” the letter said.

The situation has reached such a stage that the centre, especially the Prime Minister and Home Minister Amit Shah are determined to undermine Mamata after their disastrous defeat in the recent state assembly elections. They were looking for any opportunity to spite the Bengal CM Mamata is getting support in this battle with the centre from most of the chief ministers of the non-BJP states and the opposition parties but the issue is so vital for the future of the functioning of bureaucracy as also any opposition state government, there is immediate need for a formal conference of the state chief ministers of the non-BJP states to discuss the issue and take a common stand against the authoritarianism of the centre. It may be difficult in the present situation to hold such a meet physically, so it can be held in a virtual manner and the centre is communicated formally the joint views of the opposition CMs.

Already, the Kerala Chief Minister Pinnaryi Vijayan has written a letter to the eleven opposition CMs on the need for a joint position on vaccines. Along with this, which is very crucial for the states, the latest issue also should be discussed on a priority basis and Mamata should be extended the combined support of the opposition CMs to ensure that the centre backtracks and restores the accepted principles of federalism. Time is running out and it is high time that even the fence sitting CMs like Naveen Patnaik, Chandrasekhar Rao and Jaganmohan Reddy be persuaded to join the opposition voice against the centre for the protection of the federal principles of the Indian constitution. (IPA Service)