Mamata Banerjee's address at famed Oxford Union 'suddenly postponed'; confusion prevails

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's much-anticipated participation at the prestigious Oxford Union Debate in the UK has been postponed, hours before it was scheduled to begin, as per the West Bengal government, though the host itself still lists it as 'upcoming' though at a slightly delayed time.

At the time of writing, no clear reason has been made available by either the Oxford Union or Mamata Banerjee's camp for the sudden postponement. However, the West Bengal Government's Home Department has confirmed that the request for rescheduling had come from the Oxford Union's side.

The quite hysterical statement reads as follows:

The Oxford Union's website, however, lists Mamata Banerjee's address for 5pm. (Presumably local time, which would be 10:30 pm in India)

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There had been considerable interest in Mamata Banerjee's address at an institution that bills itself as 'most famous debating society in the world'. Trinamool Member of Parliament Derek O'Brien who himself favoured quizzing to debate during his time as a quiz-master on the famous Bournvita Quiz Contest had tweeted a link to the virtual event's webcast. Its significance was not lost on him.

"Mamata Banerjee will address the Oxford Union debate today. She is the first Indian woman leader & an administrative head to address the forum. US Presidents, British PMs & legends Albert Einstein, Michael Jackson have spoken here," Derek O'Brien had tweeted along with a link to the Trinamook's Facebook page.

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The Oxford Union Debating Society

The Oxford Union's website says about itself in the 'Past Debates' section that "Debates at the Oxford Union have left their mark on the world, their outcomes resonating far beyond the University." It adds, "To this day, the Union remains the principal forum for national and international debate."

The Oxford Union debating society was founded in 1823 and has hosted a who's who of world-famous personalities from across fields. As in many things, there exists another such society in Cambridge - the Cambridge Union - which is a little older, which had also apparently once invited Mamata Banerjee, in 2010 before she was Chief Minister, though she had then declined, as per reports. For her Oxford bow, she was supposed to answer questions that had been submitted by students.

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