Kolkata, June 5 (IANS) Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to be on a two-day visit to West Bengal later this month and attend two functions in the state, said BJP leaders in Kolkata on Friday.

On June 20, which will henceforth be celebrated as the ‘Bengal Foundation Day’, the Prime Minister is likely to address a gathering in Tarakeswar, Hooghly district, known for the iconic Tarakeshwar (Lord Shiva) temple there.

The previous Mamata Banerjee-led and Trinamool Congress-led West Bengal government used to celebrate “Polia Boishakh (Bengali New Year Day)” as the Bengal Foundation Day, and hence there was no fixed day as per the English Calendar for celebrating the day.

However, the new Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-ruled state government led by Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari has announced that June 20 will be celebrated as Bengal Foundation Day, considering the historical relevance of the day.

On that day in 1947, the Bharatiya Jana Sangh founder Dr Syama Prasad Mookerjee moved a proposal in the West Bengal Legislative Assembly to partition the province, integrating West Bengal into India.

While Mamata Banerjee opposed celebrating Bengal Foundation Day on June 20 because of the pain of several people involved with partition, the BJP argued that the foundation day of a state should be linked to the historical relevance associated with that day.

Confirming the visit schedule of the Prime Minister, the local BJP legislator from Tarakeswar, Santu Pan, told IANS that as per the tentative schedule, PM Modi will be addressing a gathering at Tarakeswar at 2 p.m. on June 20, on the occasion of Bengal Foundation Day.

“He might also attend some other programmes here on that day. But I am unable to spell out the details right now since we are waiting for the final confirmation from the Prime Minister’s Office on this count,” said Pan.

On the very next day, an insider from the state committee of the BJP said that on June 21, the Prime Minister is scheduled to attend a programme in Kolkata on the occasion of the ‘International Day of Yoga’.

As per the schedule as of now, after finishing his programmes in Tarakeswar on June 20, the Prime Minister will come to Kolkata and spend the night at Lok Bhavan in the city. The tentative venue of the programme on the occasion of International Yoga Day will be at Netaji Indoor Stadium in central Kolkata.

–IANS

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