Mamata Banerjee on Thursday said she couldn’t be part of Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s four-day India visit this week because of “big big bosses” — presumably, top BJP leaders at the Centre — and their alleged fear of the Bengal chief minister.

“What does one say, I wonder… I don’t want to speak on external affairs policies. But Hasinaji came. She and I share great personal ties… with all of them (in the Bangladesh government), in fact. It has been like that always,” the Trinamul Congress chairperson said in her address to a party meeting at Netaji Indoor Stadium in Calcutta. “I send her letters for Durga Puja, she sends saris for me. I send saris for her during Id. She sends mangoes, hilsa… we too do our best (to reciprocate).”

“She publicly expressed her desire (to meet me). This is the first time I saw something like this, that Bengal was left out when the Bangladesh Prime Minister came visiting,” added Mamata.

When Hasina had arrived in India on Monday for a four-day trip, she had rued that she wouldn’t be able to meet Mamata — who she said was like her sister — and hoped they would meet again soon.

In Bangladesh, the knives have always been out for Hasina after every bilateral visit since 2011, with the much-awaited Teesta water-sharing agreement yet to be completed. The deal is stuck because of opposition from Mamata. Although there was no likelihood of any progress in the Teesta deal this time either, detractors have already begun attacking the Bangladesh premier.

“I am grateful that she wanted to meet me. I found out from news reports. Anyway, this is a matter of the nation’s external affairs, so I will not say more,” the chief minister said on Thursday.

“Why such anger? Such bara bara babulog (big big bosses), what is there for them to be so scared? Such fury!” she added.

Mamata went on to mention several instances in recent years when the BJP-led Centre had either directly stopped her from going abroad or allegedly played spoilsport from behind the scenes.

“I received an invitation from Chicago, from St Stephen’s College (in Delhi), and from China, too, but the Centre didn’t let me go. I say you go ahead with these trips. I don’t need to go out, because travelling in Bengal is like covering the entire world,” she said.

In December last year, the Centre had disallowed Mamata from visiting Nepal, where she had been invited by the Nepali Congress, whose president is Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba.

In September last year, the Centre had denied her permission to visit Rome in October for World Peace Conference where she had been invited by Macro Impagliazzo, the president of Community of Sant’Egidio, a Catholic association based in Rome. Mamata was the only Indian to be invited to the event.

In December 2020, a virtual Oxford Union programme got cancelled 40 minutes before it was to take place, which Trinamul attributed to “political pressure from the highest levels”.

In September 2018, the chief minister had alleged that it was because of an “unholy conspiracy” that she wouldn’t be able to attend a Chicago event commemorating the 125th anniversary of Swami Vivekananda’s address at the World’s Parliament of Religions.

In July 2018, a proposed address by Mamata to students of St. Stephen’s College in New Delhi was cancelled, allegedly under pressure from the BJP.

In June 2018, she had cancelled her nine-day trip to China hours before her flight, as Beijing could not confirm her meetings with the Communist Party of China’s leadership at an appropriate level. The year before that, Mamata had been “advised” by the Centre against going to China to seek investments because of the Indo-China border standoff at Doklam.

“It happened conspicuously in 2017-18, before the Lok Sabha elections (of 2019). It has been happening again since the Assembly elections (last year), where she trounced the BJP as the whole world watched keenly,” said a Trinamul Rajya Sabha member.

The Trinamul dispensation suspects the Centre would prevent Mamata from going to Berlin next year for receiving an award for the state.

“How does this sound? In 2023, the International Tourism award for the “Best Destination For Culture” will be given in Berlin, because of the cultural activity in Bengal. This after we already got the Unesco honour for Durga Puja,” said Mamata on Thursday.