"poori janta ubhar parihae" :::::: Suvendu Adhikari - a story of Rising Stardom and the hard way ... "Giant Killer ... Twice" .... ::: His dad Shishir Adhikari would often call his son 'stubborn' and "perhaps more religious than me

Suvendu Adhikari sworn in as new chief minister of West Bengal. 

Dilip Ghosh, Agnimitra Paul take oath as Ministers. 

Suvendu can today certainly make his father Shishir Adhikari proud. 

"Today is the real independence that Shyama Prasad Mookerjee had envisioned" - Dinesh Trivedi  

"As Amit Shahji said, we have been able to overcome bhoy with bhorosha.”

“Not 46 per cent (the BJP’s vote share), we must bring more than 60 per cent of the people to us in the next election by working positively, implementing the resolutions, fulfilling Modiji’s dream. We must bring mothers and sisters to our side. We must create a Sonar Bangla.” -- Suvendu Adhikari said on Friday. 

Amit Shah said: 

“Now infiltration and cow smuggling will become impossible in West Bengal.” 

Suvendu can boast two giant-killing acts in his political career - having helped Mamata Banerjee end the Left’s 34-year rule in 2011 and then in 2026  ousting his mentor Mamata herself.  

Video link  

Mid way... he trounced Bengal's mercurial mass leader twice - in Nandgram in 2021 and then in Bhabanipur in 2026. 

                                 Suvendu Adhikari during the 2007 Nandigram agitation ( snap - The Telegraph) 

Shishir Adhikari (former Union MoS Rural Development) 

I - as Spl. Representative to 'The Statesman' accompanied another journalist colleague from another newspaper used to interact with Shishir Adhikari regularly.  Then he was Minister of State for R.D under Manmohan Singh --- UPA-2. Of course, he was fond of his son and always thought Suvendu would make big.  

 

But he would admit at times -- "I am afraid things are not happening as per his expectations". The Adhikaris - father-son duo had contributed a lot by finance and hard labour to make Mamata's agitation in Singur and Nandigram successful. 

Reportedly, the senior Adhikari never spoke clearly about those. 

"Ei shob hoe .... These things happen in politics and social service. But I know what exactly happened. That area was between the son and his mother," Shishir Adhikari said once. 

Like many or all TMC leaders, Shishir Adhikari too was a Mamata-loyalist and a hardcore that way. He said once the Trinamool has national ambition and "for us, under Mamata Banerjee and with her face, sky is the limit". (the interview was reported in 'The Statesman). 

He was also assertive kind of a personality. Few months before TMC walked out of the UPA over the issue of FDI, Shishir Adhikari and other TMC ministers had called on to PM Manmohan Singh. 

Apparently, they were not happy with the kind of 'cold treatment' they were getting from the Finance ministry and the Govt as a whole. Adhikari was most vocal in that meeting and he even told PM : "Mr Prime Minister, if you do not listen to us; we will tell our leader in Kolkata not to listen to anything else".   

Shishir Adhikari would often call his son 'stubborn' and "perhaps more religious than me ... he has picked up that from his mother". 

Former Union Minister and now High Commissioner of India to Bangladesh, Dinesh Trivedi, says, "This victory and swearing in is not for a party... poori janta ubhar pari hae".  

"Today is the real independence that Shyama Prasad Mookerjee had envisioned" 

"When India became independent and the independence that Shyama Prasad Mookerjee had seen, in real sense, today Bengal is getting that independence and has got it ... and that is why today the entire public has come out in large numbers...

"This is the result of the hard work of BJP workers and Union Home Minister Amit Shah".   

****  

What went in favour of Suvendu to be elected as BJP legislative party leader ...  

** He is known as a decisive leader.

** The BJP hopes he can steer the new government (Double Engine sarkar)

as it goes about fulfilling the primary promises of the BJP.

*** Bangadeshi Muslim immigrants issue will get top priority

*** All eyes will be there on how soon, West Bengal gets Uniform Civil Code (UCC).  Two BJP-ruled states Uttarakhand and Gujarat already have it. 

Suvendu was prominently named in the Saradha ponzi scheme and Narada cash-for-favours scams of 2013-16, with the saffron camp labelling him a “chor” (thief). He began to be probed by the central agencies.

Then came the biggest blow. After 2014, Mamata chose her nephew Abhishek Banerjee as her political heir, crushing the hopes of the ambitious protégé. 

After Suvendu’s defection in 2020, Mamata alleged he had jumped into the BJP’s “washing machine” to escape the agencies, and Trinamool portrayed him as a “traitor”.

Suvendu happens to be the first Bengal chief minister to come from the districts since Ajoy Mukherjee, also from East Midnapore, stepped down in 1971.

ends 

PM Modi pays tribute to Rabindranath Tagore ::: Stage set for first BJP Govt's swearing in West Bengal ::: Mamata invited as per protocol

PM Narendra Modi on Saturday paid glowing tributes to Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore on his birth anniversary and said --

"Today, on this special day of the twenty-fifth of Baishakh, we offer our heartfelt reverence to Gurudev Tagore."

"Gurudev Tagore was an extraordinary litterateur, thinker, and poet endowed with exceptional talent. He established himself as a unique philosopher, educator, artist, and the eternal voice of Indian civilization. 

"Through his works, he has articulated the deepest human emotions and the greatest ideals of our culture. With new ideas, creative energy, and cultural self-confidence, he enriched our society. We remember him with profound respect and gratitude. May the light of his thoughts guide our minds and endeavors."

True, it's hard to think of any other writer or poet anywhere in the world who has aroused the level of fervour that Tagore did. 

In 1913 he won the Nobel prize for literature. In the process, Tagore was the first non-European to win a Nobel. 

In 1912 he sailed from India to England with a collection of English translations – the 100 or so poems that became the anthology Gitanjali, or "song offerings". 

He lost the manuscript on the London tube. Famously, it was found in a left luggage office. Then – decisively – WB Yeats met Tagore, read his poems and became his passionate advocate (while pencillng in suggestions for improvements).   

Stage set for first BJP Govt's swearing in West Bengal   

"Mamata Banerjee has been invited as per protocol" - BJP state president 

Among others, Andhra Pradesh CM N. Chandrababu Naidu, his counterparts in Delhi Ms Rekha Gupta, Gujarat Bhupendra Patel and Meghalaya CM Conrad Sangma reached Kolkata ahead of the oath taking ceremony of the newly elected BJP government in West Bengal.

A galaxy of BJP and NDA leaders from across India have landed in Kolkata for the grand swearing in ceremony at the Brigade parade ground. PM Modi is likely to address the gathering later.  

BJP Rajya Sabha MP Rahul Sinha said: "... A historic change is taking place as a new government is being formed in Bengal, dedicated to the welfare of all. To bless this occasion, our Prime Minister will attend, and, significantly, the swearing-in coincides with 25 Baisakh, the birth anniversary of Rabindranath Tagore... 

"On this sacred day, the new government will work for Bengal’s culture, education, agriculture, and overall progress. With the Prime Minister, national leaders, and Chief Ministers from across the country present, thousands of citizens will witness this oath ceremony. Despite challenges, we are determined to uplift Bengal and make it once again a shining state of India," he said. 

Baul singers and Purulia Chhau dancers at the Brigade Parade Ground added folk music & dance element to the swearing-in ceremony of BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari.  

Video link  

BJP leader and MLA from Asansol region in South Bengal Agnimitra Paul said:

"We are extremely happy that Suvendu Adhikari is our Chief Minister, who has been unanimously elected and nominated by 207 BJP MLAs. 

He is completely eligible because the way he has fought for the last five years inside the assembly and outside the assembly...".   

State BJP President Samik Bhattacharya says, "This was not just our dream, it was the dream of millions of BJP workers... On the land of Shyama Prasad, a government of Shyama Prasad is going to be formed. Tomorrow, the Chief Minister will take oath. There can hardly be a bigger moment in our lives than this... The people of West Bengal have uprooted and thrown away the reign of jungle raj. This is the victory of democracy..."    

Another senior BJP leader and MLA from Kharagpur region, Dilip Ghosh said: 

"We struggled for a long time, and finally the public voted for change. The dream of Shyama Prasad Mukherjee has been fulfilled. The Trinamool Congress (TMC) and the Indian National Congress were rejected by the public because they oppressed the people and misused their power. 

The public gave them a befitting reply and elected the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)...".   

West Bengal CM-designate Suvendu Adhikari posts: 

 

"A historic dawn for West Bengal indeed.  It is a moment of profound pride and jubilation to welcome Visionary Leader Hon’ble PM Shri Narendra Modi to the City of Joy. Today, as we witness the Swearing-in-Ceremony of the first-ever BJP Government in West Bengal since Independence, we fulfill the dreams of our founding fathers. 

Today marks the end of decades of misrule and the beginning of a 'Double Engine' era of development, peace, and prosperity. The era of 'Sonar Bangla' officially begins.  Welcome, Pradhan Mantri Ji"

ends 

"Faith is the bird that feels the light" ..... Naya Bangal .... Bhagwa Bangal !! ... Mauj Masti ... Shanti ..... "BJP" :::: Does Suvendu Adhikari defy the logic of politics ??? .... People and intellectuals shouldn't resist two cheers

Like the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya; the miracle of Suvendu Adhikari's emergence as the chief minister is in the crowds. -- That's the power of people. 

In 2021, Nandigram created the magic. Again the faceless voters - it was an assertive message. Mamata Banerjee lost her second election after 1989. 

In 2026 - the BJP again repeated the story and could defeat Mamata Banerjee. 

The BJP symbolises many things to many people. In the context of West Bengal and the mandate 2026, it is the Hindu resurgence. It is also a step for a new chapter of Renaissance. It is nationalism and of course its Development as the foremost 'catalyst' Narendra Modi has envisioned. 

"বিশ্বাস সেই পাখি, যে ভোর হওয়ার আগে অন্ধকারেই আলো অনুভব করে।"  

(Vishwas shei pakhi, je bhor houar agey andhakarei alo anubhob kore.. 

It means ---  "Faith is the bird that feels the light when the dawn is still dark". 

The vision of Hindutva carries the strong belief that Hindus represent not only a religious group but Bharat's (or India’s) true national identity. 

Hence on the day, the BJP takes charge of West Bengal for the first time coinciding with 25th day of Baishakh (of Bengali calendar) ....  people and intellectuals shouldn't resist two cheers. 

The 'BJP wave' that West Bengal witnessed as 92 per cent of people exercised their franchise has a special significance nationally and at the level of geo-politics in South Asia. India stands only a quarter century from the centenary of its independence -- 2047. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has set a milestone - Viksit Bharat - a Developed India. It's an ambitious target.  

But none can deny the "hypnotizing delivery" of PM Modi’s speeches projects the unprecedented confidence in India’s destiny at a time when there are multiple challenges in core economic and security policies.  

The election results in West Bengal are also a vindication of the Modi Govt's policy of development but they are punctuated well with the right dosage of Hindutva ideology.

The aspirational Bengali youth wanted a change, they longed for a change for a better life. Now, they will want jobs.

There is another facet. The freebies and welfare measures have their shelf lives. Mamata Banerjee has exhausted that in West Bengal. Perhaps, PM Modi also faced this peculiarity in 2024 because the voters had already rewarded him for those including cooking gas cylinders and toilets for the poor in the 2019 parliamentary polls.

   

The slogan 'Jai Bangla' borrowed from Awami League in Bangladesh also backfired for Mamata.  

The apparatus to run the Double Engine Sarkars will now have to realize that in West Bengal things could be messier than what was Uttar Pradesh in 2017 or what was Bihar in 2005.  

In the meantime, Bangladesh is in news once again. But this time it is linked to election outcome in West Bengal - where for long existed political stalwarts who did not mind becoming 'pro-Left' politicians and administrators. 

These elements - the Leftists and later the Trinamool Congress did not mind handling the issue of Bangladesi Muslim infiltration with kid-gloves. Now things would change. 

Although so called secular (read sickular) forces governed West Bengal after India’s independence, the state was home to the early seeds of Hindutva-based politics. 

In fact, BJP (Jan Sangh) founder Syama Prasad Mookerjee, who was also associated with the Hindu Mahasabha, hailed from West Bengal. 

It was logical that the BJP leaders marked its victory by paying homage to him, underscoring the symbolic significance of this political shift.

With the BJP at the helm both in Delhi and in Kolkata and a pro-Hindutva catalyst Modi as the Prime Minister, India’s eastern approach vis-a-vis Act East Policy to South East Asia and with neighbours such as Bangladesh is poised to become more ideologically cohesive.

For the Tarique Rehman Govt in Dhaka, this may hint for a 'transition' from dealing with a fragmented system to confronting a far more decisive and unified neighbour.  

Bangladesh has also suffered enough by tilting pro-Pakistan in 2024-25. Hence Dhaka may have to play ball especially on economic front.  

ends 

Why not Punjab next ???? How to stop BJP's "unstoppable and almost invincible" onward journey into India's political landscape :::::: TMC's exit comes after debacle suffered by Shiv Sena and NCP

 A lot depends on the capacity of the opposition parties to reinvent themselves. 

The Congress was always vulnerable. Rahul Gandhi's leadership was lacklustre. 

However, what is notable is that the BJP's victory in West Bengal now puts every regional parties on notice. TMC's exit from power comes after the large scale debacle suffered by Shiv Sena and the NCP in Maharashtra. 

Even after BJP's unprecedented success in 2014, not many could have imagined that the major states of eastern and northeastern India -- West Bengal,  Bihar, Odisha and  Assam -- would all be under the BJP. 

If Mamata Banerjee could be defeated in a state such as West Bengal with sizable Muslim voters and the TMC had an advantage of 70 seats in its kitty already; no regional party will be safe on their home turf. 

In Punjab, the BJP leader Sunil Jakhar and others have started posing a question, why not Punjab next. 

The AAP is in power in the state and so far the Lotus party is not a formidable force while the Akali Dal and Congress remain two key players. 

Next big head on collision is in Uttar Pradesh by March 2027 and here the Lotus party's principal opposition in Samajwadi Party.

But experts are already suggesting that no state is structurally safe from BJP's powerful electoral machine. The Samajwadi Party had a good show in 2024 Lok Sabha polls. 

It won more seats (43 ) -- seven more than BJP from the state. In previous occasions - 2014 and 2019; the BJP had won 71 and 63 seats respectively.  

In West Bengal this year; from Muslim votes' perspective - three districts of Murshidabad, Malda and North Dinajpur made all the difference in the final outcome.

Altogether, there are 43 Assembly seats in these three districts. 

In 2021, the BJP could pick up eight seats and the TMC won 35. But in 2026; the split in Muslim votes helped other parties including Congress and CPI-M as well.

The BJP won 18 of the 43 seats. Trinamool could win 20 seats.

The Congress, the newly floated AJUP and the CPI-M shared remaining five with the Marxists winning one.  

The double standards of the so called opposition unity also is a major challenge. The Congress and TMC fought bitterly during polls in Bengal. And in Tamil Nadu after elections; the grand old party dumped DMK for a not so sure journey for power.  

"West Bengal has been breached," BJP spokesperson Shazia Ilmi said.

"The verdict demonstrates that the BJP's core formula — religious identity combined with welfare delivery, nationalism, and a disciplined grassroots organization — can travel further than previously assumed," said Ilmi.

She pointed out that governing a border state also allows the BJP to align state administration with central security priorities along one of India's most sensitive corridors linking the northeastern states to the rest of the country.

Winning a state with a substantial religious minority population — chiefly Muslims,  account for over a quarter of West Bengal's 100-million-plus population — also points to a significant consolidation of Hindu voters across caste and class lines.  

On the mandate in West Bengal, Dr Rajdeep Roy, Assam BJP leader told this blogger: 

"We are not over stating it. The fact of the matter is the Partition of India happened due to Muslim appeasement policies of the Congress. 

But more importantly, since 1905 when Bengal under British regime was partitioned; it is for the first time that the Hindus have shown so much of unity in this eastern region. This mandate will have a tectonic impact both in India's domestic politics and also in geo political sense".

   

Muslim factors:

Analyst Tarapod Guha in Durgapur says, "The split in Muslim votes and the landslide win of the BJP have made things murkier. We have a nightmarish experience as West Bengal has emerged as the fourth Indian state after Jammu and Kashmir, Assam and Uttar Pradesh; where the perceived veto power of Muslims have vanished".

In Uttar Pradesh and Assam, the BJP has been returning to power repeatedly because the split in Muslim electorate continues. In fact, in Assam (close to Bengal); the BJP scored a hat-trick winning as many as 82 seats in the 126-member assembly.

The polarisation of Indian voters between the Congress and the BJP also stands exposed in Assam. 

The Congress of Rahul Gandhi won 19 seats in Assam and to the surprise of

many 18 of them are Muslims.

Mamata Banerjee was immensely popular amongst Muslims. But the election outcome does not reflect that.

There is another facet. The freebies and welfare measures have their shelf lives. Mamata has exhausted that in West Bengal. 

Perhaps, PM Modi also faced this peculiarity in 2024 because the voters had already rewarded him for those including cooking gas cylinders and toilets for the poor in the 2019 parliamentary polls.

   

Awami League slogan in Bengal polls: 'Jai Bangla' slogan borrowed from Awami League in Bangladesh also backfired for Mamata. 

The Bengal mandate is certainly a display of Hindu resurgence. But it was also 

a vote against violence perpetrated against Hindus in neigbouring Bangladesh especially after the ouster of Sheikh Hasina.

Now, the BJP will have to deliver. Hence to attract investment, it may have to apply the so-called Gujarat Model.

But things could be messier than what was Uttar Pradesh in 2017 or what was another development-starved state of Bihar in 2005.

The election results in West Bengal are also a vindication of the Modi Govt's policy of development but they are punctuated well with the right dosage of Hindutva ideology.

The aspirational Bengali youth wanted a change, they longed for a change for a better life. Now, they will want jobs.

ends 

'The path to a Bengal where the mind is free from fear .... and Bengal is walking that path'..." says Amit Shah ::::: "From today, our responsibility has increased greatly."

 "It is the responsibility of all of us BJP workers to pursue the goal of 'Sonar Bangla' and fulfil the expectations of the people of Bengal. Today, the Kavi Guru's lines are ringing true: 

'The path to a Bengal where the mind is free from fear and the head is held high with pride has been paved, and Bengal is walking that path'..." 

-- says Union Home Minister Amit Shah after election of Suvendu Adhikari as the new BJP legislature party leader.   

Rahul Gandhi blames EVMs, cites 'vote chori' to hide Congress' electoral failures: Amit Shah in Kolkata. 

"BJP's victory in Bengal not an expansion of our organisation or validation of ideology but about national security," he says.

"I also want to say on behalf of the party that the expectations that the people of Bengal have placed in us, based on which they have given us this mandate, we will do our best to uphold that trust to the fullest," he said.  

"After a 100-year ideological journey, the BJP is in power everywhere from Gangotri to Gangasagar. Since 1950, we've embarked on this journey under the leadership of Syama Prasad Mookerjee. 

The Minister said:

"Today, in his own birthplace, after 1950, in 2026, Syama Prasad Mookerjee's government is being formed. When Article 370 was repealed, a wave of joy swept through workers across the country. But several senior workers told me that there's still something left... 

They said the BJP's flag has yet to be hoisted in Bengal. I believe that wherever Syama Prasad Mookerjee is, he would be wholeheartedly blessing PM Modi's leadership," he said. 

He said:  "So many of our party workers in Bengal have lost their lives to usher in BJP's rise to power, never seen such violence expect in Bengal, Kerala by TMC and communists".  

The Home Minister also said:

“For five decades, Bengal’s culture and traditions have been influenced by foreign ideologies, and now it is our responsibility to free them and once again revive the legacy of Ramakrishna and Swami Vivekananda. 

From today, our responsibility has increased greatly. 

"Only through hard work carried out with humility and a sense of duty can we express our gratitude to the people for this mandate. Today Bengal’s victory comes after a long ideological journey of nearly a hundred years…When Article 370 was removed, there was joy across the country, but some senior workers had said that something was still incomplete. 

"When I asked what was missing, they said that the BJP flag had not yet been firmly established in Bengal. Today, I believe that wherever Syama Prasad Mookerjee is, he must be blessing the leadership of Narendra Modi for taking the Bharatiya Janata Party forward and fulfilling that aspiration.”

Over to Double Engine Sarkar; West Bengal gets a 'new driver' - It's Suvendu ::::: Strong Democracy and Better Leadership --- the synthesis has produced Suvendu Adhikari - West Bengal's Man of the Year ---

Over to #DoubleEngine Sarkar; #WestBengal gets a 'new diver'  

- It's #SuvenduAdhikari ::: 

"I announce the name of Suvendu Adhikari as Leader of West Bengal BJP Legislative Party,"  -- #AmitShah @PMOIndia @HMOIndia  @BJP4Bengal 

 "I want there was one man who dreamt ....". --- Dhirubhai Ambani used to say .... 

Union Home Minister Amit Shah said, "It is our collective responsibility to fulfil the promise that Narendra Modi has made to the people of Bengal. 

We must dedicate our very best to the people and future of Bengal.”

He also said that the BJP would bring a change in Bengal's democratic structure. 

"For five long decades, Bengal has suffered from the erosion of democracy, the collapse of law and order, the weakening of its economy, and a negative pace of development. 

Today, Bengal is entering a new phase," Shah said.

Suvendu had defeated Mamata Banerjee in Nandigram, his bastion, in 2021. The date with history was on May 4, 2026. char maee, Didi gayi.... Here emerged Suvendu Adhikari -- the Man of the Moment. Defeating Mamata Banerjee twice and the latest in her fiefdom Bhabanipur is more an electoral victory. 

It's snatching West Bengal from the clutches of an Islamic radicalism. It was saving the state from Corruption and from the goondaism of the syndicate raj. It was perhaps clear - the state has a 'new driver'. West Bengal has a history of its own and a significant one.  

Tathagata Roy, former Governor of Tripura and Meghalaya, says 

"Don't say "We Bengalis." Say, "We Bengali Hindus." Bengali Hindus and Bengali Muslims are inhabitants of two different planets. The oppression inflicted by Bengali Muslims upon Bengali Hindus—in East Pakistan, Bangladesh, and even in Murshidabad of West Bengal—puts even Hitler's persecution of the Jews to shame." 

Hence partition and the Hindu-Muslim narrative is so crucial in determining the much needed a new roadmap for the state of West Bengal.  

Bengali women voters sealed the fate

Suvendu Adhikari (born 15 December 1970) is son of Shishir Adhikari.

He served as Leader of the Opposition till 7th May 2026. 

Suvendu Adhikari previously worked in the state ministry for the West Bengal government from 2016 to 2020. 

He was elected Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) for Nandigram in 2016, 2021.  In 2026, he is representing Nandigram and also Bhabanipur.

Previously he was elected from South Contai in 2005, and Member of Parliament (MP) for Tamluk in 2009, and 2014.

He previously served as the Minister of Transport from 2016 to 2020, Irrigation and Water resource from 2018 to 2020 in the Government of West Bengal. 

He was also a member of Lok Sabha from Tamluk from 2009 to 2016 and the chairperson of Jute Corporation of India from 2020 to 2021. 

He was a member of the Trinamool Congress from 1998 to 2020 and Indian National Congress from 1995 to 1998. 

Even if someone does not like him; the people of West Bengal and those interested in the socio cultural and development of the state would celebrate Democracy's shift to a 'new gear' !!  

But on the backdrop these being said - one can only add -- expectations will be high.  

Can the new chief minister with the blessings of PM Narendra Modi and Amit Shah reverse the dynamics? It's easier said than done.  

The new chief minister - Suvendu Adhikari  will have his priorities worked out.  

His new job will require a mixed of many traits -

boldness, decisiveness, malleable charishma. 

Some of these will not be 'attractive' in a friend but will be essential for a leader and an administrator. 

The taste of the pudding is in the eating.

Mamata's failure was not as a politician. There she might have succeeded to an extent. 

But Didi failed as an administrator. 

The same vice had brought the downfall of Buddhadeb Bhattacharya as well.  Hence, tight rope walk will be a minimum demand from the BJP too.

Amit Shah reaches Kolkata ahead of BJP legislature party meeting, Bengal govt swearing-in :::: In 2014 .... an arrogant Mamata had posed a quizzer "Who is Amit Shah" .... 12 years later .... the entire state and Hindu community has answered that !!

Amit Shah reaches Kolkata ahead of BJP legislature party meeting, Bengal govt swearing-in  

Can BJP bring the real PORIBORTON 

Will banner, bickering and mayhem now become history in West Bengal ?

Union home minister Amit Shah will attend the BJP legislature party meeting at the Biswa Bangla Convention Centre, where the party’s legislative leader will be elected.

On Saturday, Shah will attend the swearing-in ceremony at the Brigade Parade Ground along with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP president Nitin Nabin, and chief ministers of all NDA-ruled states.

The BJP secured a historic victory in the recently concluded West Bengal assembly elections, bringing an end to the TMC’s 15-year rule and handing Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee one of the biggest political setbacks of her career.

Governor R N Ravi dissolved the assembly on Thursday, clearing the way for the formation of the new government.  

Shah arrived in Kolkata on Friday to attend the BJP’s legislature party meeting and the swearing-in ceremony of the party’s first government in West Bengal following its landmark assembly election victory.

Shah was received at the Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport by BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari and other party leaders before heading to a hotel in New Town.  

Take Aways

Date with Destiny cannot be postponed:

Some Good must come of the BJP victory in the state. Can banner, bickering and mayhem now become history in West Bengal ?

The mandate is certainly a display of Hindu resurgence; but it was guided by genuine nationalism and people’s concerns for women safety and against corruption.

The West Bengal mandate is certainly a display of Hindu resurgence. But it was guided by genuine nationalism. It was a vote against Islamic radicalism. 

It was a vote - as BJP's Samik Bhattacharya says – “an electoral battle to prevent the state of West Bengal turn into a new Bangladesh”.

The TMC did not realise the slogan 'Jai Bangla' has a typical communal agenda as it was borrowed from Awami League in Bangladesh.

And hence TMC had to a pay a bigger price any other ruling party would have paid after 15 years in office.

Finding fault with EVMs or blaming EC will never help the cause of TMC revival.

TMC lost touch with people : 

One example was demonstrated on the day of polling in Kolkata when an innocuous frail looking housewife standing in queue to cast vote said - "I am here to vote for the BJP because the state under Mamata -a woman chief minister - gave people the right to say Allah o Akbar; but me and my children could not say Jai Shri Ram".