After Oxford, London School of Economics and Queen Mary University invite Mamata for talks

The London School of Economics (LSE) and the Mile End Institute of the Queen Mary University of the UK capital have invited West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to attend sessions with their academic communities during her scheduled trip to England this month, an official said here on Monday.

Banerjee will visit London to deliver a lecture at the University of Oxford on March 27 and she is scheduled to leave Kolkata on Friday. The Centre approved her visit last week. The BJP, however, claimed that Banerjee will not address any programme at Oxford University itself but in one of its affiliated colleges. Such “misrepresentation” tarnishes India's reputation and she should apologise to people, BJP IT Cell head Amit Malviya said. The LSE authorities invited Banerjee "for an engaging session with our academic community…. Your insights into social development, women's empowerment, and governance would greatly enrich our students and faculty,” the LSE said in its invitation letter to Banerjee. “… we would be grateful to organise an event at your convenience. Our team is prepared to accommodate any specific requirements to ensure a meaningful and comfortable experience for you," the LSE invitation read.

Dr Sofia Collignon, Director of Mile End Institute, in a letter sent to the state government on Monday invited Banerjee for a meeting with academics and research students from across the United Kingdom during her visit. "West Bengal has become a case study around the world for its women-centric development schemes and initiatives, with the ‘Kanyashree Prakalpa’ winning the UN Public Service Award at The Hague". Kanyashree is a financial assistance scheme for girls. Queen Mary University has a cluster of academics who work on the democratic decline and political polarisation around the world, the letter said noting that the “Trinamool Congress has the highest number of women representation in the Parliament after securing votes across all communities in West Bengal, despite increasingly polarised politics." "Our academics and students would be very grateful for the opportunity to discuss these initiatives with you and explore how these schemes can be replicated across India to further empower women and girls," Collignon said in the letter.

Banerjee has been offered to talk on her vast experience in governance and her commitment to the welfare and progress of the state during her speech at the University of Oxford. The invitation to Banerjee, dated February 7, 2024, sent by pro-vice-chancellor of the University of Oxford, Jonathan Michie, also mentioned that Banerjee's "insights would be invaluable to our academic community". "The agenda for your talk would be open for discussion, and we would be pleased to accommodate any particular topics or themes you may wish to address," Michie, who was present at the Bengal Global Business Summit in November 2023 here, wrote in the invitation letter. The BJP, however, alleged that Banerjee is misleading the people about her visit to Oxford.

Banerjee will be speaking on ‘Social Development: Empowerment of Women and Children’ at Kellogg College, one of Oxford University's 36 affiliated colleges and not at the university itself, claimed Malviya, also the party’s co-incharge of West Bengal. "She has such a penchant for falsehoods that she once claimed to have earned a Ph.D. from Georgia University, a university that never even existed. Now, she has been caught faking an invitation to Oxford," he posted on X. The TMC supremo should apologise to the people of West Bengal and “it would be a travesty if Oxford University does not permanently ban her as a speaker, even in the future," Malviya added.

In London, Banerjee is also likely to hold a meeting, probably on March 25, with industrialists to invite investments to the state, an official said. The Bengal CM is scheduled to return to the city on March 29. This would be Banerjee's second visit to London after November 2017 when she had been there to participate in a business meeting organised by the Scottish Development International with the support of Asia Scotland Institute and Edinburgh Chamber of Commerce, at Edinburgh.