CP Joshi dismisses Mamata Banerjee's demand for financial package

KOLKATA: AICC General Secretary C P Joshi today dismissed Mamata Banerjee's demand for a financial package from the Centre to tide over the debt crisis, saying devolution of fund to the states is determined by Finance Commissions.

"Devolution of fund to various states is clearly determined by the formula evolved by Finance Commissions and no state could be taken as exception to it," Joshi, who is appointed in-charge of West Bengal, said.

Ever since she took over as the Chief Minister of West Bengal, Banerjee had been urging the UPA-II government to grant a financial package to repay the huge interest burden on loans taken by the previous government or a three-year moratorium on repayment of interest.

Banerjee claimed her government had inherited a debt burden of of over Rs 2,00,000 crore from the Left Front government.