New Delhi: The centre has rejected West Bengal's Tableau for the Republic Day parade on January 26, stating that the Tableau proposal of the West Bengal government was not taken forward for further consideration by the expert committee after deliberations in the second meeting.
Out of the total 56 shortlisted Tableau for this parade, 22 proposals have now been finalized by the defence ministry including 16 from the states and union territories and 6 from the central ministries. The Government's move is the talk of the political rows stating that it could spark fresh controversy between WB Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and the centre.
It is to be mentioned that the ministry had received 32 proposals from states and union territories and 24 from Central Ministries and departments which were evaluated in a series of meetings of the expert committee comprising eminent personalities from the fields of art, culture, painting, sculpture, music, architecture, choreography. Ministry officials have said that only a limited number of Tableau can be shortlisted for participation in the parade due to time constraints.
Speaking about the West Bengal's Tableau, the ministry stated, "it is pertinent to mention here that the Tableau of government of West Bengal was shortlisted for participation in the Republic Day parade 2019 as an outcome of the same process but it could not be the part of the 2020's parade as it was the decision from expert committee."
It is worth mentioning that the decision came amid the Bharatiya Janata Party's increasing footprint in the state which would lead Trinamool Congress-led Bengal government loggerheads with the centre over several issues. The latest issue that is being the reason for a face off is over the National Register of Citizens (NRC) and Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA).