Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulates West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari and members of the cabinet of the West Bengal government, in Kolkata on Saturday (May 9, 2026).
| Photo Credit: ANI

Ballygunge MLA Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay, 82, had served as the State Minister of Agriculture and Parliamentary Affairs earlier. File. Photo: X/@SobhandebChatt1.

In this image received on May 6, 2026, BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari’s personal assistant Chandranath Rath was shot at from close range by unidentified assailants in West Bengal’s North 24 Parganas district on Wednesday (May 6, 2026) night, sources said.
| Photo Credit: PTI

Kolkata:

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is facing criticism from Leader of the Opposition in the West Bengal Legislative Assembly Suvendu Adhikari for shifting the blame to the Border Security Force (BSF) regarding infiltration in the state.

Mr Adhikari accused Ms Banerjee of indulging in “low-level politics” by blaming the BSF for infiltration, stating that the security forces serve the nation, not the government.

“The security forces serve the nation and not the government. They are the protectors of the nation. The way you have blamed our soldiers for the infiltration happening in West Bengal in the last few days displays the lowest level of your politics,” Mr Adhikari wrote in the letter.

On Thursday, Mamata Banerjee alleged that the Border Security Force (BSF) was facilitating militants and infiltrators from Bangladesh to enter the state and further stated that because of this there were disruptions in the region.

In his letter, Mr Adhikari termed the Chief Minister’s comment an insult to security forces.

“Allegations and counter-allegations indeed occur in politics. But dragging security forces into it, insulting them and passing the buck for your failures to them is nothing but substandard politics. This is an insult to the 75,000 personnel of the CAPFS, 33,000 BSF personnel in Bengal and all the soldiers of the nation,” he said.

Open Letter to the Chief Minister of West Bengal; Smt. Mamata Banerjee, regarding the irresponsible and derogatory remarks made by her on the role of the @BSF_India concerning infiltration at the India Bangladesh Border:- pic.twitter.com/KMrZrNmNAW

— Suvendu Adhikari (@SuvenduWB) January 4, 2025

“It is deeply painful to see our valiant soldiers being insulted. Our security forces risk their lives to protect the borders of our nation and the citizens regardless of whether it is shivering cold, searing heat, tempestuous rain or a disaster. The nation will never forget your insulting words about our soldiers,” he added.

He pointed out that a major stretch of the country’s border is open, due to adverse geographical conditions. In some places there are inaccessible forests; in others, there are swollen rivers and snow-covered mountains.

“Infiltrators use these adversities to their advantage, entering our territory and starting to live in the villages,” he said.

Mr Adhikari also pointed out that the state government’s lack of cooperation with the BSF on border-related subjects is a significant issue. He questioned how infiltrators are able to obtain identity cards, ration cards, and other documents, suggesting that the state government’s officials are not doing their job properly.

“When these infiltrators come to a village, then why do the patwaris make their identity cards? How do they get their ration cards made? How do the police and other officials verify them as Bona fide citizens and issue their identity cards?” he asked the Chief Minister.

He also accused the West Bengal government of not cooperating with the BSF on border-related subjects.

Earlier, Ms Banerjee had remarked that the BSF, which is responsible for guarding the borders, was allowing individuals to cross into India from regions such as Islampur, Sitai, and Chopra and questioned the motives behind this and attributed it to a “blueprint” from the central government. She had said that the situation would not have been possible without the central government’s involvement.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

West Bengal’s Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari was in Sandeshkhali today, a day after Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee paid the obscure riverine island a visit. 

Sandeshkhali was in the news earlier in the year, especially in the run up to the Lok Sabha elections, when there were allegations of exploitation of women and land grab. The BJP’s campaign in West Bengal during the Lok Sabha elections pivoted around Sandeshkhali. 

Yesterday Mamata Banerjee had termed the Sandeshkhali allegations as lies and said there was a huge game of money being played there.  Suvendu Adhikari – once a close aide of Ms Banerjee who joined the BJP ahead of the 2021 assembly election — hit back. 

“If there is a BJP government formed in the state, there will be a commission on the Sandeshkhali incident. And for the women you’ve sent to jail, remember the BJP will send you to jail for making these women go to jail in false cases. We will take revenge, with interest,” Mr Adhikari said. 

Though Sandeshkhali became a major campaign pitch for the Lok Sabha election earlier in the year, the Trinamool held its ground despite the protests against its local leaders and won the Basirhat Lok Sabha seat, under which the Sandeshkhali assembly seat comes. 

The BJP had fielded Rekha Patra, a woman from Sandeshkhali as its candidate, and the party may repeat her again when the bye-polls are announced.

Basirhat will see a bye-election again due to the death of its Member of Parliament Haji Nurul Islam and once again the Sandeshkhali issue is likely to feature prominently. 

With an eye to the by-polls, Ms Banerjee had appealed to the women voters in her speech yesterday, saying, “Don’t fall into the trap of bad men. And women must remember not to go even if someone calls you”.

“If someone misleads you, or lies to you, I know there is a huge game of money here. Later you saw everything turned out to be false. Lies don’t last long, they are exposed one day,” she had said.

Kolkata:

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee will visit the riverine island of Sandeshkhali in North 24 Parganas district today– a first since the sexual harassment controversy broke out ahead of the Lok Sabha election. But the Leader of Opposition, BJP’s  Suvendu Adhikari will not be far behind. Mr Adhikari has announced that he would hold a ‘Jana Sanjog Yatra’ in the area the day after the Chief Minister’s visit. 

The Chief Minister will be heading for Sandeshkhali early today to chair a public distribution programme. 

The obscure island in West Bengal had hit the headlines earlier this year, before the Lok Sabha elections.

Its trigger was the protest by the locals against alleged incidents of sexual assault and land grabbing. They blamed the local Trinamool strongman Sheikh Shahjahan — who has since been suspended by the party — and his two aides, Shibu Prasad Hazra and Uttam Sardar. 

The Trinamool later held a press conference on a series sting operations in which a video surfaced on social media. It showed a former BJP leader purportedly claiming that the whole episode was “scripted by the BJP”. 

The Trinamool said the allegations of sexual harassment were politically motivated, meant to defame the party. 

The BJP claimed the allegations were an example of the Trinamool misrule and exploitation of women. 

In the Lok Sabha election, the Trinamool Congress won the Basirhat seat, within which the Sandeshkhali assembly seat is located. 

Sheikh Shahjahan was arrested on February 29  after he managed to evade the police for around two months. He went on the run after his supporters attacked three Enforcement Directorate officials who visited Sandeshkhali on January 5. The attack had let the officials injured. 

Kolkata:

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee will visit the riverine island of Sandeshkhali in North 24 Parganas district today– a first since the sexual harassment controversy broke out ahead of the Lok Sabha election. But the Leader of Opposition, BJP’s  Suvendu Adhikari will not be far behind. Mr Adhikari has announced that he would hold a ‘Jana Sanjog Yatra’ in the area the day after the Chief Minister’s visit. 

The Chief Minister will be heading for Sandeshkhali early today to chair a public distribution programme. 

The obscure island in West Bengal had hit the headlines earlier this year, before the Lok Sabha elections.

Its trigger was the protest by the locals against alleged incidents of sexual assault and land grabbing. They blamed the local Trinamool strongman Sheikh Shahjahan — who has since been suspended by the party — and his two aides, Shibu Prasad Hazra and Uttam Sardar. 

The Trinamool later held a press conference on a series sting operations in which a video surfaced on social media. It showed a former BJP leader purportedly claiming that the whole episode was “scripted by the BJP”. 

The Trinamool said the allegations of sexual harassment were politically motivated, meant to defame the party. 

The BJP claimed the allegations were an example of the Trinamool misrule and exploitation of women. 

In the Lok Sabha election, the Trinamool Congress won the Basirhat seat, within which the Sandeshkhali assembly seat is located. 

Sheikh Shahjahan was arrested on February 29  after he managed to evade the police for around two months. He went on the run after his supporters attacked three Enforcement Directorate officials who visited Sandeshkhali on January 5. The attack had let the officials injured.