Cracks Appear Between Bengal CM Suvendu and State BJP

 New Delhi: The bonhomie between West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari and the state BJP appears to be wearing thin. Adhikari’s statements on issues ranging from attacks on the Left-affiliated book stalls to the multi-crore “Mahalaya” event at Eden Gardens seem to have raised quite a few eyebrows within the party. Also, Adhikari's nephew's role in the stampede incident at Chorbagan Durga Puja drew subtle criticism from the BJP colleagues, including state party president Shamik Bhattacharya.

" Adhikari is behaving like Leader of the Opposition (LoP) rather than CM," a section of senior party leaders lamented.

According to sources, during BJP president Nitin Nabin's recent visit to Kolkata, a state leader indicated that Adhikari was more "focussed" on governance than organisational work. Nabin, in turn, is learnt to have made it clear that "nobody was above the party," signalling that no leader, regardless of their position in government or the organisation, could stray from the party line.

The Rs 167 crore "Uma Agamani" extravaganza at Eden Gardens also raised eyebrows within the party. Sources said a senior BJP minister was particularly "unhappy" with the scale of expenditure. He reportedly asked a section of party leaders, "Eto khoroch korar ki dorkar chhilo? (What was the need for spending so much?)"

Simmering differences within the party also surfaced when the Chief Minister publicly defended the recent attacks and vandalism at the Left-affiliated book stalls. State finance minister Swapan Dasgupta had earlier strongly condemned the attacks on the book stalls and went on to say, "It hangs my head in shame. Who are they? Who gave them the responsibility? What is their authority?"

Immediately after the attack, state BJP spokesperson and former state minority morcha president Charles Nandi took to social media to condemn the incident. "No valour in vandalising book stalls of CPM. Their book stalls do not attract anyone..." he posted on X.

West Bengal BJP president Samik Bhattacharya also strongly condemned the vandalism, asserting that the party maintained a strict "zero tolerance stance" towards such acts. However, the Chief Minister, on Monday, publicly defended the vandalism, saying, "We will not allow anyone to publish anti-nation or anti-Sanatan writings or to hurt any religion on the soil of Bengal."

Earlier, much to the chagrin of the majority of state BJP leaders, Adhikari triggered a major political controversy by declaring that only followers of "Sanatan Dharma" will be allowed to touch and handle Durga idols during the immersion process.

The stampede at the Chorbagan Durga Puja pandal, where about 20 people died, escalated into a political controversy when the official posters from the puja committee revealed that Debdeep Adhikari, the chief minister's nephew, was listed as the "chief patron". When asked to respond to the nephew controversy, the state BJP president quipped, "As far as I know, the Chief Minister's nephew is a minor and lives in Kanthi."

Speaking to this newspaper, a section of state BJP leaders expressed concern that the chief minister's remarks could damage the party's image and undermine its efforts to retain the support of the Hindus. Some felt that the statements ran counter to the party's stated principle of "Sabka saath, sabka vikas".