Siliguri civic polls have added significance to a BJP procession and public meeting scheduled in the city on Tuesday, with Suvendu Adhikari set to attend administrative meetings before joining the party’s political programme at Baghajatin Park.
According to a report by Telegraph India, Adhikari will attend three administrative meetings at Uttarkanya, the state’s branch secretariat in Siliguri. He will then travel to Baghajatin Park in the centre of the city and participate in a march organised by the BJP. The procession is expected to conclude at Mahatma Gandhi More, where he is scheduled to address the gathering.
The BJP has organised the event under the slogan “Ganatantra Bachao, Orajokota Hatao”, or “Save Democracy, Eradicate Anarchy”. Arun Mondal, president of the BJP’s Siliguri organisational district, said elected representatives from across north Bengal would join the rally.
“The protest march carrying the message ‘Save Democracy, Eradicate Anarchy’ will be organised in Siliguri on Tuesday, in which the chief minister will participate. BJP’s elected representatives from across north Bengal will join the rally,” Mondal was quoted as saying.
The programme comes as civic elections are due in Siliguri, alongside elections in several other municipalities in the hills and plains. The timing gives the event a direct municipal political context, with the BJP using a large public mobilisation to engage party workers and supporters ahead of the local-body polls.
A source in the Darjeeling district administration said Adhikari would first attend the three meetings at Uttarkanya before joining the public event. The supplied report did not provide details of the subjects or decisions expected at those administrative meetings.
Unconfirmed sources cited in the report said Adhikari might also meet representatives of Rajbanshi organisations. The discussions could include longstanding demands related to constitutional recognition of the Rajbanshi, or Kamtapuri, language. The report did not confirm whether such a meeting would take place.
The BJP’s mobilisation is also linked to its position in north Bengal. A political observer cited by Telegraph India said the party had won 40 of the region’s 54 Assembly seats. The observer said the upcoming civic elections in Calcutta and Siliguri, as well as municipal polls in other hill and plains towns, made the rally significant for consolidating the BJP’s support base in the region.
The event also follows opposition parties joining hands over the Chief Electoral Commissioner issue, according to the report. The supplied material does not provide further details about that dispute or identify the specific demands being raised by the Opposition.
The immediate public programme in Siliguri will therefore combine party mobilisation, municipal-election messaging and the participation of BJP representatives from across north Bengal. The next confirmed milestones are the administrative meetings at Uttarkanya, followed by the procession from Baghajatin Park and the public address at Mahatma Gandhi More on Tuesday.
