Kolkata: West bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee cancelled her nine-day trip to China hours before she was to fly out after Beijing didn't confirm her meetings with the communist party's leadership "at an appropriate level". The cancellation was announced by finance minister Amit Mitra at a suddenly called press meet. She was scheduled to fly out on Saturday night. "Till yesterday everything was going on well but unfortunately the Chinese side could not confirm the political meetings at appropriate level," he said, reading from a statement.
India's Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj, who is presently out of the country, and Foreign Secretary VK Gokhale have been informed about her decision, Mitra said. Soon after, Mamata put out a series of tweets in which she said, the visit would not have served any purpose since the Chinese side did not confirm the political meetings.
"Therefore, the purpose of my visit with a delegation to China under the exchange programme is of no use," the Chief Minister tweeted. "However, I wish the continuation of the friendship of India and China in the days to come and it should strengthen further in the interest of both the countries," she added.
Sushma Swaraj had asked the Chief Minister to make the visit in March this year under the government's exchange programme with the Communist Party of China's international department. The Indian Ambassador to China Gautam Bambawale had tried his best to make the programme a success but the meetings proposed by the Indian side could not be confirmed by the Chinese authority.
This isn't the first time that Mamata's plans to visit China have run into trouble. She was expected to travel to China to seek foreign investment in 2017 but it did not work out because of the tensions at that time over Doklam. According to reports, the foreign ministry had then advised her not to visit.
