Kolkata, May 9 (IANS) BJP leaders from across the country, including Union Ministers, Chief Ministers and Members of Parliament, arrived in Kolkata to attend the swearing-in ceremony of the first-ever BJP government in Bengal.

Suvendu Adhikari is set to be sworn in as Bengal’s first BJP Chief Minister at a ceremony to be held at Brigade Parade Ground.

Rajya Sabha member Harsh Vardhan Shringla said that the day is significant for the people of the state, who, he said, want change in the state.

Shringla, speaking to the reporters, said, “It is a very big day, not only for West Bengal but for the entire country. That is why so many important dignitaries are attending today’s event. Besides the Prime Minister and the Home Minister, there are 20 Chief Ministers and Cabinet Ministers present. This is because everybody in India wants to stand in solidarity with the people of West Bengal today.”

“For us, who are from Bengal, this is a very big day — a day for change. We have brought this change, and this change will be very good for the people of West Bengal,” Shringla added.

Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta also arrived in Kolkata to attend the swearing-in ceremony.

Speaking to the reporters, the Delhi CM said, “I am very happy for Bengal, for the daughters of Bengal, for the women of Bengal, who have endured such a long era of 15 years of oppression and suppression under the TMC government. But now, the people of Bengal have voted for ‘Sonar Bangla’. This new dawn is for a Bengal which will witness trust, development and progress. With this, Bengal will move along the rest of the country on the path of progress.”

As he arrived in Kolkata, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said, “BJP, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and Suvendu Adhikari will work for development.”

Union MoS Jayant Chaudhary, speaking to the reporters, said, “I thank the people of Bengal for the historic mandate. We are looking for Bengal, which can be an economic powerhouse in our country’s landscape, to take its rightful place. I express my congratulations, especially to the BJP’s grassroots workers. It’s going to give a lot of impetus to the entire NDA family.”

Speaking to IANS, BJP MLA-elect Dilip Ghosh said, “After many years of struggle, there has been a change in West Bengal. The Bharatiya Janata Party has an opportunity to form the government. An experienced and strong leader from our party has been chosen as the Chief Minister by the party.”

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, BJP national president Nitin Nabin, Union ministers, and chief ministers of all NDA-ruled states will attend the swearing-in ceremony.

Union Minister Ram Mohan Naidu, Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, Union MoS Jayant Chaudhary, Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu and Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami are in Kolkata for the ceremony.

This time, Adhikari got elected simultaneously from his native Nandigram Assembly constituency in East Midnapore district and Bhabanipur Assembly constituency in South Kolkata. At Bhabanipur, he defeated his predecessor and the former Chief Minister, Mamata Banerjee, by a margin of over 15,000 votes.

Adhikari first earned the ‘giant‑killer’ tag in the 2021 Assembly elections after defeating Banerjee from Nandigram. With his latest victory, he has once again unseated her, consolidating his position as the unanimous choice to lead the BJP’s first government in the state.

–IANS

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