Three southern CMs skip PM-chaired NITI Ayog meet; Stalin, Revanth, Naidu in attendance

Prime Minister Narendra Modi with union ministers, chief ministers and administrators of various states and union territories, and other dignitaries during the 10th meeting of the Governing Council of NITI Aayog, in New Delhi, on May 24, 2025. | Photo Credit: PTI

Three southern Chief Ministers, including from NDA-ruled Puducherry skipped the NITI Ayog's Governing Council meeting in New Delhi that was chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday.

Chief Ministers of Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Telangana-- N Chandrababu Naidu, M K Stalin and A Revanth Reddy, were scheduled to attend the meeting and put forth their views before the council on respective issues.

While the Chief Minister of Congress-ruled Karnataka, Siddaramaiah, was busy with "prior engagement" in the state and sent his speech to be read out in the council, Marxist veteran and Kerala CM, Pinarayi Vijayan deputed his cabinet colleague K N Balagopal on his behalf. Last year also, Mr. Vijayan had not attended a Niti Aayog meeting of CMs in Delhi and had sent Balagopal.

In Bengaluru, a source close to Mr. Siddaramaiah said, "The Chief Minister is not boycotting the meeting, but he has a prior engagement in Mysuru".

Similarly, Puducherry chief minister N Rangasamy, who heads the AINRC-led NDA coalition in the union territory, also skipped the event. It was not clear immediately whether the speech of the chief minister would be read out at the meeting.

Incidentally, Mr. Stalin had last attended the 2021 governing council meeting. With the opposition AIADMK questioning his motive behind attending today's meeting, he had days ago asserted he would be in the national capital to voice the demand for "fair financial right of Tamil Nadu." He had said: "I will be firm on the ideology! I will get funds for Tamil Nadu through struggle." AIADMK top leader Edappadi K Palaniswami had alleged Mr. Stalin's Delhi visit was for the sake of family's benefit.

Niti Aayog's 10th Governing Council meeting, chaired by PM Modi, has the theme 'Viksit Rajya for Viksit Bharat@2047'.

The council, the apex body of Niti Aayog, includes all state CMs, lieutenant governors of Union Territories, and several Union ministers. Prime Minister Modi is the chairman of Niti Aayog.

Published - May 24, 2025 01:53 pm IST