Overview
- Officials said the hired helicopter could not fly on Tuesday because its insurance had expired, halting a planned trip to Bongaon in the Matua heartland.
- Mamata Banerjee was informed around 10 a.m. ahead of a 12:30 p.m. landing window and then traveled by road, using the journey for public outreach.
- Senior bureaucrats called it a serious procedural lapse, noting a trial flight was conducted the previous day without detecting the expired coverage.
- Transport Minister Snehasish Chakraborty said the insurer is based in London, the renewal papers arrived after 1:30 p.m., and the company will be show-caused and penalised.
- Banerjee alleged ‘political sabotage,’ the BJP dismissed the claim as laughable, and an inquiry has been initiated into the oversight.