Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari, speaking at the inauguration of Ganesh Puja in Kolkata on Saturday, September 12, 2026, reflected on the history of West Bengal. He said that if the state had not been created as a separate homeland for Bengali Hindus, its people would have faced a fate similar to that of Chinmoy Krishna Das Prabhu, a Bangladeshi Hindu monk who has been imprisoned for nearly two years on accusations of disrespecting the national flag.
Adhikari highlighted the emotional impact of photographs of the monk grieving beside his mother’s remains, which had moved Hindu communities worldwide. He noted that the monk was granted a five‑hour parole this week to attend his mother’s funeral and that he had previously participated in protest rallies as Leader of the Opposition when the monk was arrested in October 2024.
During the ceremony, the chief minister criticized both the former Left Front government and the current Trinamool Congress administration for eroding the cultural traditions of Bengali Hindus. He argued that during the 34 years of Left Front rule, traditional Hindu practices were ignored and that the TMC had introduced changes to Durga Puja celebrations, such as altering immersion dates to avoid overlap with Muharram, which he described as a form of ‘Jamaatification.’
Adhikari announced that his government will work to restore the traditional Durga Puja calendar. He said that no community pujas will be inaugurated before Mahalaya and that the Ashtami day of the festival will be a dry day, aiming to bring back the customary rituals associated with the festival.
