West BengalChief MinisterSuvendu Adhikari has asked ministers in his cabinet to concentrate on their work in the office instead of being hyperactive on the streets. Mr. Adhikari gave advice to his cabinet colleagues at a cabinet meeting at the State Secretariat on Wednesday (September 23, 2026).

Two Ministers of the Suvendu Adhikari cabinet — Minister for Municipal Affairs Agnimitra Paul and Health Minister Sharadwat Mukherjee have been seen actively visiting streets and hospitals, respectively. Ms. Paul has often been seen trying to clear sidewalks and footpaths, sometimes arguing with pavement dwellers and vegetable sellers. She was also seen with a microphone in hand, spreading awareness on road awareness.

Public spat between Minister and MLA

Health Minister Sharadwat Mukherjee has recently taken surprise visits to various government hospitals. The Minister, who is also an MLA from Bidhannagar, on Tuesday (September 22) got into a public argument with BJP MLA from the neighboring Rajarhat-Newtown constituency, Piyush Kanoria. The altercation was caught on camera which has resulted in embarrassment to the party.

Sharadwat Mukherjee was listening to the grievances of ward number 28 of South Dum Dum Municipality in his assembly area. While the Minister was reading the complaint letters of the people of the area, Piyush Kanoria arrived and sat in front of the stage where the common people were sitting. “Among us, the MLA from the neighboring assembly, Piyush Kanoria, is there,” the Minister said. Mr. Kanoria reacted by saying that the Minister cannot say that he is an MLA from another assembly constituency.

Allegations of extortion and cut money, which were a hallmark of the Trinamool Congress regime, have started cropping up in the BJP regime as well. The complaint letter that the Health Minister read on Tuesday referred to similar allegations. Mr. Mukherjee said that most of the letters were anonymous, which means that the BJP government’s promise of “Bhoy out Bhorsa In (Fear out, Faith in)” has not yet been established. Mr. Kanoria said that he is a resident of Dum Dum Park and the Minister made a mistake by saying he is from the adjoining constituency.

West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari said people have the constitutional freedom to choose their food habits and religious practices, in an apparent response to godman Dhirendra Shastri, popularly known as Bageshwar Baba, over his purported remarks on Bengalis eating non-vegetarian food during Durga Puja.

Also Read: Congress leader summoned by police for ‘burning’ Bageshwar Baba’s photo over Durga Puja remark

Speaking at a summit organised by a private news channel on Saturday (September 12, 2026), Mr. Adhikari said people were free to follow the religious practices of their choice, and that nobody should be subjected to abuse for such personal decisions.

“Dharma gurus (Religious leaders) of different faiths express their views. It’s for people to decide whether they want to accept them or not. Our great Constitution, written by Babasaheb Ambedkar, has given you the freedom,” he said.

Referring to his own food habits, Mr. Adhikari said he had offered prayers at the Kalighat temple here on the occasion of Kaushiki Amavasya on Thursday (September 10) and subsequently had ‘prasad’ comprising fish head and Basanti pulao.

“On the day of Kaushiki Amavasya, I offered prayers to Maa Kali at Kalighat. After that, I had Basanti pulao with fish, including its head, which had been offered to the goddess,” he said.

The Chief Minister also said he would visit the Baghbazar Gaudiya Math on September 19 on the occasion of Radha Ashtami, where he would have ‘satvik’ (pure vegetarian) food.

“On Radh Ashtami, I have been invited to Baghbazar Gaudiya Math, where I will go and accept ‘satvik’ food,” he said.

Mr. Adhikari said people had the right to follow different religious traditions and questioned the practice of targeting or abusing individuals over their food choices.

“We have the right to follow Vaishnav traditions or other traditions. This right has been given to us by our religion and also by the Constitution. But what kind of right or freedom of speech is it to target someone, make videos around them and hurl obscene abuses at them?” he asked.

The Chief Minister’s remarks came amid a controversy over comments by Bageshwar Baba, who had described non-vegetarian food as “dirty” and called for restrictions on its consumption during Durga Puja.

West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Friday (August 28, 2026) participated in an event near the Jadavpur University campus, where he criticised a section of students raising Azadi slogans and vowed to restore the spirit of nationalism on the campus.

Mr. Adhikari visited Jadavpur for a public recital of the national song Vande Mataram, which saw thousands of people joining the Chief Minister.

“What freedom do you want? Freedom to consume heroin, ganja and drugs? Freedom for the tukde-tukde gang?” the Chief Minister said, flaying the slogans of Azadi (freedom) raised by a section of students.

“What Azadi do you want? ‘Kashmir Mange Azadi’,” Mr. Adhikari asked. According to the Chief Minister, during Operation Sindoor, university students took out rallies not in favour of the country but to stop the war. “Go write Free Pak Occupied Kashmir first. It is ours and it must be returned!” he said.

The Chief Minister’s visit comes within 10 days after the supporters of Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) and Left students’ unions clashed on the Jadavpur campus on August 19. The university has set up an inquiry committee and multiple FIRs have been registered in connection with the incident.

A nearly 1-km-long ramp was erected for the programme. Traffic movement along Raja Subodh Chandra Mallick Road was suspended between 1 p.m. and 6 p.m., while four gates of Jadavpur University remained closed.

Stern warning

Issuing a stern warning to the students, whom he described as “ill-mannered”, the Chief Minister said, “Either they will stay, or we will. There will be nothing in between”. The Chief Minister made references to Nandigram and Jangalmahal, claiming he had freed those areas of Communists and Maoists.

Describing himself as someone who can clean “garbage”, Mr. Adhikari said, “I know the ailment and also the medicine”. He also challenged the Jadavpur University Teachers’ Association (JUTA), stating that students cannot hide behind the association. He recalled an earlier incident at the university during his tenure as the Leader of the Opposition when a student died due to ragging. The Chief Minister said that some people had jumped on his vehicle then and, when questioned, replied: “We are Maoists. We have come to tell you to go back”.

A few days ago, the Chief Minister directed an immediate inquiry into alleged “anti-national” graffiti and posters reported at the boys’ hostel of the university’s Arts unit.

Referring to former Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee interacting with her supporters through social media, West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Monday (August 24, 2026) suggested that his predecessor remains active on Facebook and said that he will ensure that she does not hit the streets.

“Remain active on facebook. You will not have to go out on the streets anymore. I will also make arrangements so that you cannot go out on the streets,” the Chief Minister said, while addressing a press conference at the State Secretariat.

Ms. Banerjee, who only a few hours ago reiterated that she will not be pushed into a political sanyas, described the remark as a threat.

“A NEW LOW in Indian politics! @SuvenduWB, while seated in a government office, has brazenly THREATENED me, publicly declaring that he will ensure I cannot even leave my home. I call upon the Hon’ble President of India, the Hon’ble Chief Justice of India, and the people of India: Is this the India envisioned by our Constitution?” the Trinamool Congress chairperson wrote on X in a late evening post. A number of leaders of the Trinamool Congress joined Ms. Banerjee in taking on the Chief Minister.

After the defeat in the West Bengal Assembly polls 2026, Ms. Banerjee, who made her political mark as a ‘street-fighter ’, has not hit the streets often. On a few occasions she tried to do so the response has been tepid.

Mr. Adhikari cited the two instances of Baruipur, where a minor was raped and killed, and Halisahar, where a Trinamool supporter was killed in police custody and said that she failed at both the occasions.

However, the remark to keep the Trinamool Congress chairperson confined to social media has larger ramifications. Despite her party facing the biggest existential crisis – with majority of MPs and MLAs switching sides and warming up to the BJP, Mamata Banerjee remains the only leader to take on the might of the BJP which has 207 MLAs in a 294 member house.

Over the past few years, the politics in West Bengal has been hinged on a contest between an ageing leader who wants to pass over the baton to her nephew and one of her closest aides turned rival. Suvendu Adhikari has defeated Mamata Banerjee directly in an electoral contest on two occasions — in Nandigram in the 2021 Assembly polls by a margin of 1956 votes and in 2026 at Bhabanipur by a margin of 15,065 votes. The 2026 Assembly polls might not be the end of political rivalry, and people of West Bengal may continue to see the two political personalities taking on each other.

There is an enthusiasm among the BJP leadership after coming to power, but the Suvendu Adhikari government is caught in the same policy trap of giving cash doles which had been a hallmark of the Trinamool Congress regime. 

With women protesting the denial of cash incentives under Annapurna Bhandar scheme as promised by the BJP during the election campaign, Mamata Banerjee sees it as an opportunity to revive both her credibility and her party.

There is also unease among the leaders who left Mamata Banerjee to warm up to the BJP, particularly those who are from the minority community, and that can be a silver lining for the Trinamool Congress chairperson. For Suvendu Adhikari, the challenge is how long can they keep the former Chief Minister confined to her residence and social media.

West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Monday (August 24, 2026) said that 23,000 certificates under the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), 2019 have been distributed out of the 2.30 lakh applications that have been made.

“Through the district magistrates, we will complete the hearings and grant the certificates. Now it is up to us to give certificates,” Mr. Adhikari said. The Chief Minister said that about 2.07 lakh applications are pending with the State government. He also urged people who have to come to India after facing religious persecution to apply to the State government for CAA certificates.

A few days ago, the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) transferred the processing of pending citizenship applications under the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), 2019, from Empowered Committees to District Collectors in eight States and Union Territories.

During the campaign for the West Bengal Assembly elections 2026 Prime Minister Narendra Modi promised to fast-track and accelerate the implementation of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) to grant legal citizenship rights to refugee communities like the Matuas and Namasudras.

Speaking to media persons at the State Secretariat, the Chief Minister said that the State’s Governor, R.N. Ravi, has given his nod for the new Act enabling the arrest of those attacking police, cost recovery for public property damage, and a notification was issued in this regard during the day.

Mr. Adhikari was referring to the West Bengal Maintenance of Public Order (Amendment) Bill, 2026, which imposes a payment of compensation on persons committing offences such as causing damage to public or private property. Another Bill passed by the State Assembly, the West Bengal Public Safety and Control of Anti-Social Activities Bill, 2026, which empowers the government to detain a person for 12 months is awaiting the nod of the President.

West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Monday (July 27, 2026) expressed hope that about a dozen of closed tea gardens in north Bengal will reopen in the next few months and urged the migrant workers from the State to return.

“We have become part of Pradhan Mantri Chaa Shramik Yojana. More than ₹300 crores have been allocated for the scheme. The workers of the closed tea gardens would get benefits of the scheme. There are about 25 tea gardens which are closed, and we hope that about 10 to 12 tea gardens will open in the next two to three months,” Mr. Adhikari said.

The Chief Minister said that State’s Labour Minister Arjun Singh and deputy chairperson of Tea Board C. Murugan have taken steps regarding reopening of tea gardens. Tea gardens in North Bengal face neglect, and workers whose wages are ₹250 a day face distress when the tea gardens close. Mr. Adhikari claimed that the State was witnessing a resurgence and appealed to the migrant workers to return.

“I appeal to migrant workers to come back. The state is witnessing the emergence of numerous industrial opportunities. There are also several projects being implemented jointly by the State and the central government,” Mr. Adhikari said.

The Chief Minister referred to the recent investment proposals in the State and stated that enough employment opportunities are being generated in the State. After the change of regime in the State, several industrial houses have announced investment projects in the State. The number of migrant workers from West Bengal working in other states is somewhere between two million and five million, who are forced to work in other states because there are not enough employment opportunities in the State.

Mr. Adhikari announced a new health scheme – Chief Minister’s Health Insurance Scheme- for the people who are not covered under the Ayushman Bharat scheme. “Those who are not covered under the Ayushman Bharat scheme will receive benefits under the Chief Minister’s Health Insurance Scheme. Distribution of Ayushman Bharat cards will begin from August 16, and all eligible beneficiaries will receive benefits under the Annapurna Yojana by August 30. No ordinary citizen will face any hardship,” he said.

West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Saturday (August 1, 2026) assured exiled Bangladeshi writer Taslima Nasrin of security in the State, saying the “days of threats are over”.

Sharing the stage with Ms. Nasrin at Kolkata’s Rabindra Sadan at an event that marked the writer’s return to the city after 19 years, Ms. Adhikari said: “You are most welcome to Bengal. Please come here whenever you want and as many times as you wish. Your safety is my responsibility.”

Ms. Nasrin was exiled from Bangladesh in 1994 over her writings after which she started living in Europe and then in Kolkata. But she had to leave Kolkata in November 2007, when violence erupted in the city after some organisations called for action against the author over her books. The violence reached such alarming proportions that the Army had to be deployed in the city to contain the situation. She had blamed the Left Front government and the Trinamool Congress government for not allowing her to return to the city.

She reached Kolkata on Friday (July 31, 2026) to attend the event at Rabindra Sadan.

The Chief Minister said Ms. Nasrin’s return indicated that not only had the face of the government changed but the entire system too. “This Bengal is free from any barriers and chains. Every single pillar of the Constitution is safe here. We all have the righteous opportunity for freedom of speech,” said Mr. Adhikari, welcoming the writer with a portrait of Bankim Chandra Chatterjee, the writer of national song Vande Mataram.

Veteran BJP leader and former Tripura Governor Tathagata Roy also shared the stage with the writer. The audience comprised a number of State Ministers, including Swapan Dasgupta, Agnimitra Paul, and Kalyan Chakrabarti.

Thanks CM

“I have always questioned this city. Did I ever harm you [Kolkata]? I haven’t come for any answer today. I have come back to Kolkata with tears in my eyes and also immense love in my heart. This was my dream for the last 19 years. History remembers who shut this door. Now, history will also remember who opened this door again,” said Ms. Nasrin, expressing gratitude to the West Bengal Chief Minister for facilitating her return.

“It is still painful that a writer had to return to the city of her own language with such high security. I am thankful to the government. But my gratitude is not my allegiance to any party. I have not come here for any political party. I came here to express my voice over women’s liberty and freedom of speech,” the 63-year-old writer said at the event.

West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Sunday (July 26, 2026) met the victims of the Sundarbans trawler capsize tragedy earlier this month and announced several steps for better disaster management preparedness in the coastal areas. 

At least 11 fishermen were found dead while four others are still missing after a trawler from Purba Medinipur capsized on July 8, 2026. It lost communication soon after setting off and remained missing till it was traced by the Coastal Guards on July 14, 2026, at c Officials said the fishermen in the trawler were from Digha, Nadia, Howrah, and East Medinipur in West Bengal, and from Odisha.

Soon after the incident, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a ₹2 lakh ex-gratia for each of their family members from the National Relief Fund. Meanwhile, on Wednesday (July 22, 2026), CM Adhikari also announced an ex-gratia of ₹5 lakh and a civic volunteer job for one eligible member of the family. 

On Sunday (July 26, 2026), Mr. Adhikari met the families of the victims. “Many such incidents took place earlier but the government never cared about them. Our government did. We feel that it is our responsibility,” he said. 

In view of the poor status of the coastal police stations, the CM declared to appoint efficient police officials in those stations immediately. They will also supported with advanced technology. 

“I have also asked the disaster management department to form a 50-member Quick Response Team for Digha and surrounding coastal areas so that they can respond to any difficult situation promptly and as soon as possible,” he said. 

West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Monday (July 20, 2026) made public the report of Justice Susanta Chatterjee commission, which probed the police firing on July 21, 1993 which claimed the lives of 13 Youth Congress supporters.

The commission was set up by former Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee after she came to power in 2011 and Mr. Adhikari said Ms. Banerjee neither implemented several key recommendations of the panel nor made its report public despite receiving it in 2014. Ms. Banerjee, a Youth Congress leader then, was also injured in the police action. The report was made public on the eve of Martyrs Day rally, when the rival factions of the Trinamool Congress will hold separate rallies in Kolkata.

“The commission recommended ₹25 lakh as compensation for the family of each person killed and ₹5 lakh for every injured person. But the previous Trinamool Congress government neither implemented these recommendations nor paid the compensation,” Mr. Adhikari said. The families of those killed received only ₹2 lakh and the injured ₹15,000, the Chief Minister alleged.

Mr. Adhikari said the former Chief Minister had always claimed to be the prime witness in the July 21 firing, but she was not asked by the commission to give her statement. The Chief Minister referred the role of the then Home Secretary Manish Gupta, who later went on to become Power Minister in the Mamata Banerjee government.

“The Mamata Banerjee dispensation also did not implement several recommendations made by the commission in its report, despite receiving it in 2014. Mr. Gupta was the Power Minister in her government then, and she was probably trying to save him,” Mr. Adhikari said.

According to the Chief Minister, the commission had summoned a total of 44 people, including former Chief Minister (late) Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, the then Chief Secretary N. Krishnamurthy and the then Home Secretary, Mr. Manish Gupta, former Kolkata Police Commissioner Tushar Kanti Talukdar and CPI(M) leader Biman Bose.

“Many have used the emotions of July 21 and the blood of martyrs to amass their personal property and political fortunes, but the families of the martyrs are being completely neglected today,” Mr. Adhikari said.

‘Unnecessary, unjustified’

Reading out portions of the panel report, Mr. Adhikari said it had concluded there was no situation warranting police firing on the Youth Congress rally and described the use of force as “unnecessary, unjustified and unprovoked”. The commission found that apprehensions of protesters storming Writers’ Buildings, the then State secretariat, were “imaginary”, and the police firings at Mayo Road, Dorina Crossing and Esplanade were completely unwarranted.

Mr. Adhikari said the panel had prepared a list of 44 key witnesses, including Mr. Gupta, Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, ex-Kolkata Police commissioner Mr. Tushar Talukdar, veteran Left leader Mr. Biman Bose and former Congress leader Somen Mitra, but questioned why Ms. Banerjee herself was not examined.

Mr. Adhikari said his government would subsequently table other pending reports in the Assembly, including those relating to the Comptroller and Auditor General’s observations on Cyclone Amphan relief and alleged irregularities in the procurement of medical equipment during the COVID-19 pandemic.