Kolkata, March 21 – Leader of the Opposition in the West Bengal Assembly, Suvendu Adhikari, launched his campaign for the Bhabanipur Assembly constituency in South Kolkata on Saturday, claiming that there is palpable anxiety among Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, evident in her body language due to the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) program.
This time, Adhikari is contesting from both Bhabanipur, where the Trinamool Congress candidate is the Chief Minister, as well as from Nandigram in East Midnapore district, where he has already served two terms as a legislator.
On Saturday, Adhikari began his full-fledged campaign after offering prayers at the iconic Kali temple at Kalighat, which is located very close to the Chief Minister’s residence.
After offering prayers at the temple, he interacted with the media and claimed that both the “anxiety surrounding SIR” and the “fear of defeat” are evident in the Chief Minister’s body language, and the general public can easily perceive this.
“The message is clear. The Chief Minister is behaving as if she has been pricked by something. The general public is aware that the Chief Minister is anxious and scared,” the leader of the opposition said.
He also stated that the fact that the BJP is genuinely serious about defeating the Chief Minister is evident from the party's decision to field him from Bhabanipur against Mamata Banerjee.
“This demonstrates how seriously the BJP views Bhabanipur. I am a loyal soldier of the party and the Prime Minister, Narendra Modi. I followed the instructions of my party,” Adhikari said.
He also strongly criticized the Chief Minister for her political comments earlier in the day at a gathering on the occasion of the Eid festival at Red Road in Central Kolkata. “The Muslim organizations should condemn the Chief Minister for using this auspicious occasion to make political statements. Our Muslim brothers and sisters should condemn the Chief Minister for her actions,” the leader of the opposition said.
Earlier in the day, while addressing the Eid gathering at Red Road, the Chief Minister launched a scathing attack against Prime Minister Narendra Modi, claiming that he was the principal mastermind behind the SIR program.