Kolkata, Sept. 26 -- Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari, speaking at a programme at the National Library auditorium in Kolkata on Saturday, said the electorate had "saved" Bengal from being doomed.
He said he had even planned to send his elderly parents to Odisha to protect them from harassment, fearing that he would be jailed if the BJP lost the polls.
Adhikari also stated that his government has made singing of 'Vande Mataram' mandatory in registered madrasas.
He accused the previous Mamata Banerjee government of allowing infiltrators into the state and changing its demography.
"Rest assured... With a nationalist government that gives primacy to retaining the 'Sanatani' tradition at the helm, the state's borders will be secured, and every infiltrator will be pushed back," he said.
"Our government has made the singing of the national song 'Vande Mataram' mandatory in state schools and registered madrasas," Adhikari added.
The CM said the BJP government had designated June 20 as West Bengal's foundation day instead of 'Poila Baisakh' to remind people of the contributions of Syama Prasad Mookerjee and Swami Pranabananda, whom he credited with ensuring that Bengal did not become part of Pakistan.
He said a resolution adopted at the Hindu Maha Sammelan in Tarakeswar from April 4 to 6, 1947, called for West Bengal to be a state dominated by Bengali Hindus. His government, he said, was "working to implement that resolution".
The CM said much work remained to be done, claiming that his government had stopped cow slaughter in the state. He added that the government would promote 'gaushalas' across Bengal.
Adhikari attended the "Ram Sharad Kothari Pratibha Samman 2026", organised by the Ram Sharad Kothari Smriti Sangha at the National Library.
The Kothari brothers, Ram and Sharad Kothari, were well-known 'Kar Sevaks' from Kolkata who died in Ayodhya during the Ram Janmabhoomi movement.
The CM said the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) would soon be implemented in Bengal, arguing that the country should have a single set of laws. He also cited the abrogation of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir by PM Modi.
He said his government was determined to curb infiltration and had allocated land to the BSF for border posts. The state, he added, had also set up centres along the border for people allegedly involved in infiltration.
Adhikari said that he was a college student when the Kothari brothers died in Ayodhya in 1992 during the Ram Mandir movement.
"Lalkrishna Advani led the Rath Yatra, but it did not take place in Bengal," he said. The Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) held a separate Rath Yatra in his hometown, and he worked as a sevak under ex-MLA Satyabrata Maiti, who was the VHP president for that region.
The CM said his government was changing the names of roads to personalities associated with the nation's heritage and spiritual past, and a committee has been formed in this regard.
"Occasions like Durga Puja should retain our Sanatani values, rituals and tradition... No puja will be inaugurated on 'Pitri Paksha', as was practised during the TMC rule," he said.
He said Rs 2,000 crore has been allocated for setting up a pilgrimage circuit from Tarapith to Tarakeswar to promote religious tourism. Adhikari also promised to create more job opportunities and develop the state.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.