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Pandals & Politics: Bengal’s Durga Puja Season Sets Stage For Election Battle
Pandals & Politics: Bengal’s Durga Puja Season Sets Stage For Election Battle
Durga Puja is just around the corner, and while organisers in West Bengal are busy giving their pandals the final touches, political parties are also gearing up for the festive season. With elections scheduled early next year, both the Trinamool Congress and Bharatiya Janata Party plan to use Durga Puja as a platform to connect with the people.
Chief minister Mamata Banerjee has already announced a grant of Rs 1.10 lakh for each club, which experts believe is aimed at reinforcing the message that the government stands firmly with the puja organisers.
This year's pandal themes have taken on a political colour. A number of pandals with BJP influence have adopted “Operation Sindoor" as their theme. The renowned Santosh Mitra Square Sarbojanin Durga Utsav in Kolkata, for instance, will showcase displays ranging from the S-400 missile system to BrahMos. Organisers have hinted that union home minister Amit Shah may inaugurate the pandal.
Speaking with News18, organiser and BJP leader Sajal Ghosh said, “I did not start Durga Puja after becoming powerful, unlike some TMC ministers. This puja has been organised since the time of my great-grandfather. We usually highlight themes for the nation, and this year we felt it was important to showcase the valour of our soldiers. There is no competition with Bengali Asmita. If others want to take up such themes, that is their choice."
It's not just Kolkata—BJP-linked pandals elsewhere are also following the same line. In Balurghat, union minister of state Sukanta Majumdar's Newtown Pally Puja has also chosen Operation Sindoor as its theme. Majumdar told News18, “The valour of the Indian Armed Forces must be saluted. They have done a mammoth task for the nation, and it is because of them that we sleep peacefully. We want the youth to be inspired and motivated to join the armed forces. As for Bengali Asmita, it cannot exist outside India's Asmita. This is nothing but vote politics."
On the other hand, pandals linked to TMC ministers are embracing the theme of Bengali Asmita (pride). With elections looming, the ruling party is also making its message clear. Of Bengal's top five pujas, three to four are organised by ministers. Chief minister Mamata Banerjee herself will inaugurate several of them. Notably, Suruchi Sangha, organised by minister Arup Biswas, has chosen “Bengali Asmita" as its central theme. Party insiders say this aligns directly with Mamata Banerjee's election campaign slogan, which focuses on Bengali pride.
The BJP, however, has dismissed the TMC's narrative. State president Samik Bhattacharya told News18, “They can take up any pandal theme, but there is no competition. They have always opposed ‘Vande Mataram' by Bankim Chandra, so how can they now talk about Bengali Asmita? It's a fake narrative. Operation Sindoor is a tribute to the armed forces. This time, the BJP will set up stalls at various pandals to promote ‘Vocal for Local' and nationalist ideology. Let me make it clear—this is TMC's last puja in power."
The party will also set up book stalls in various pandals under the “Vocal for Local" theme, said sources.
BJP sources further revealed that the party may distribute saris during the festivities. Senior leader Locket Chatterjee added, “We will make people aware of how TMC wants to bring in more Rohingyas—that is why they are doing all this. We will always stand with the people."
TMC leaders maintain that their association with Durga Puja is long-standing and genuine. A senior party leader said, “Let them (BJP) do whatever they feel like. We have always been part of puja, and that is nothing new."
What is evident, however, is that the battle for Bengal will play out not just in rallies and campaigns, but also in the grandeur and themes of Durga Puja pandals.
Source: News18
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