Kolkata, Oct. 14 -- Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Wednesday renewed his attack on veteran CPI(M) leader and senior advocate Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharya, warning that police would act against him for allegedly hurting Hindu sentiments. Adhikari said Bhattacharya had been summoned but failed to appear before the police, adding that he could approach the court if he wished.

The dispute follows an alleged attack on Bhattacharya's south Kolkata residence on October 8, after which he blamed "Hindutwawadi miscreants" in a social media post. Adhikari had issued a 24-hour ultimatum to withdraw or amend the post. Bhattacharya refused, citing freedom of speech and arguing that the chief minister was speaking as a representative of a religious community rather than a constitutional authority.

Meanwhile, the state Cabinet adopted a special resolution congratulating Prime Minister Narendra Modi on completing 25 years in public office. Adhikari credited Modi's leadership with promoting Bengal's cultural heritage, national identity and development. The resolution cited the recognition of Bengali as a classical language, West Bengal Divas, the 150th anniversary of Vande Mataram, the disclosure of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose's files and Santiniketan's World Heritage status. The Cabinet decided to forward the resolution to the Prime Minister's Office.

Adhikari also announced that Modi would attend Pravasi Bharatiya Divas in Kolkata on January 8. He accused the previous Trinamool Congress government of failing to implement several central welfare schemes in Bengal.

The chief minister also targeted former chief minister Mamata Banerjee and MAITC national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee over their absence from Durga Puja inaugurations. He questioned why Mamata was not visiting pandals and recalled her earlier virtual inaugurations. He challenged Abhishek to visit Diamond Harbour, where he had inaugurated 1,200 pujas in 2025, and contest the constituency if he

had the courage.

Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.