Bolpur (WB), Jul 28 (PTI) Escalating her anti-BJP offensive in the run up to the 2026 assembly polls, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday launched a ‘Bhasha Andolan’ (language movement), accusing the BJP and the Election Commission of conspiring to implement the NRC “through the backdoor” and unleashing “linguistic terror” on Bengali-speaking migrants.
Launching the statewide ‘Bengali Language Movement’ from Bolpur — the cultural crucible shaped by Nobel laureate Rabindranath Tagore — Banerjee declared she would “give up her life but not her language”, and vowed to stand against attempts to erase Bengali ‘asmita’ (pride), disenfranchise the poor, or drive out migrants under the guise of electoral roll revision.
She alleged that the BJP-led Centre, in collusion with the EC, was targeting minorities, OBCs, the poor, and Bengali-speaking voters through the Special Summary Revision, to strike off genuine names from the voter list in a “covert” NRC-like exercise.
Daring the EC to delete names of genuine voters, Banerjee warned that such “steps would attract consequences”.
Leading a protest rally of TMC supporters and returnee Bengali migrants, Banerjee said, “We will stop this conspiracy to jeopardise our existence in the name of linguistic terror and an attempt to implement NRC through the backdoor… The EC, with due respect, are you playing the government’s NRC game?” “I will not allow NRC to be implemented in Bengal as long as I am alive. I won’t allow detention camps to be built here. Try removing names from Bengal… there will be consequences. Are you ready to face the music from our mothers, our sisters, and our cultural groups when they decide to rise against you in a non-violent manner?” she asked.
Waving to cheering crowds and holding a portrait of Tagore, the TMC supremo staged a three-kilometre-long march, flanked by ministers, senior party leaders and elected representatives.
“We have no enmity with any language. I believe that unity in diversity is the foundation of our nation. But if you try to erase our language and culture, we will resist peacefully, powerfully, and politically,” she said.
Alleging that the EC was working at the behest of the Centre, she said, “A former minister in the BJP government is now trying to delete names of voters from the electoral list to assist his friend in the double-engine government. I dare them to omit genuine voters in the name of electoral roll revision. We will not allow them to make Bengalis homeless in their own country.” Issuing a warning rich in symbolism, she said, “If you (EC) dare delete names from Bengal’s voter list, you will witness Chhau dance, dhamsa-madol, conch shells, cymbals, and war drums. Have you heard such sounds before? We will make you hear them.” Giving a message to the state’s booth-level officers (BLOs), who double up as EC functionaries during electoral exercises, Banerjee said, “Remember, BLOs are government employees of this state. Do not harass people in the name of voter list revision.” Earlier, addressing an administrative review meeting at Gitanjali Stadium in Bolpur, Banerjee reinforced her stand, directing officials to ensure that no legitimate voter is arbitrarily removed during the electoral rolls revision.
“The EC takes over only after poll dates are announced. Until then, and again after elections, the administrative control remains with the state. You are employees of the state government. Don’t harass anyone needlessly,” Banerjee told BLOs present at the meeting.
Referring to reports that around 1,000 BLOs from West Bengal were sent to Delhi for training, Banerjee claimed that she was kept in the dark.
“At least the district magistrates should have informed me or the chief secretary. My request to the BLOs is to ensure that no one’s name is removed from the voter list unnecessarily,” she said.
“Not just religious minorities, the poor and OBCs are being targeted by them (the BJP). We must stand by all persecuted Bengali migrants,” she said, announcing a state-run scheme to assist returnee migrant workers who have faced harassment in other states.
Reacting sharply to her remarks, Leader of the Opposition and senior BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari accused Banerjee of trying to influence and intimidate officials involved in the electoral roll revision process.
“She is attempting to interfere with the functioning of the EC and influence the ongoing electoral roll revision process for political gains. Her comments to booth-level officers are tantamount to intimidation,” he alleged.
Banerjee appealed to Bengalis across India never to forget their identity, mother tongue, and motherland.
“You can forget everything, but you must not forget your roots. If Bengal can bring Independence and lead social reforms, it can very well fight for its own existence,” she declared to a thunderous applause.
Banerjee had last week announced agitation from July 28, terming it a second ‘Language Movement’, and drawing parallels with the historic 1952 protests in Dhaka (then East Pakistan) where students laid down their lives demanding recognition of Bengali as an official language. The United Nations later declared February 21 as International Mother Language Day to commemorate that struggle.
In an emotionally charged warning, she added, “You need to fight these divisive forces on the streets. If you steal our addresses and try to make us stateless, we will ensure that you, too, are left without one.” PTI SMY PNT RG NN MNB PNT ACD
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