Barely a month after the announcement of the West Bengal Assembly election results, where Trinamool Congress won with a landslide victory, political theatrics between the Bhartiya Janta Party-led Centre and West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee is still finding their way in the administration of the state. This time, the drama surrounds the now-former state chief secretary Alapan Bandyopadhyay. 

In a dramatic escalation of events, just four days after the Centre extended his term as Chief Secretary at the request of Mamata Banerjee, the Centre recalled him back to the North Block. 

This was just a few hours after both Mamata Banerjee and Bandyopadhyay skipped a review meeting held by the PM on Cyclone Yaas at Kalikunde Airport on 28 May. According to Banerjee, they submitted two reports of the damage by the cyclone and funds required for relief and reconstruction. 

Mamata Banerjee, in a letter to the Centre, made it clear that she will not allow Bandyopadhyay’s transfer to Delhi as he was handling the state's COVID crisis and accused the PM of treating bureaucrats like "bonded laborers". AND Bandyopadhyay, instead of reported to the Centre, announced that he is retiring. But in an interesting twist, soon after his announcement, he was appointed in a special position as the Chief Advisor to Mamata Banerjee. 

But his new appointment may not protect him from the Centre’s displeasure which on 31 May issued a show-cause notice to Bandyopadhyay for his absence from the review meeting and asked him to submit a response within 3 days.

But how did the BJP-TMC feud begin and how has it taken shape over the past month since the West Bengal elections and what political message is the Centre sending in this tug of war over a veteran civil servant?

Host and Producer: Himmat Shaligram

Guest: Senior journalist Payal Singh Mohanka and Aditya Menon, The Quint’s Political Editor.

Editor: Shelly Walia

Music: Big Bang Fuzz

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