PM Modi Seeks Blessings of Veteran BJP Worker at Suvendu Adhikari’s Swearing-In Ceremony

Kolkata, May 2026: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday sought the blessings of veteran BJP worker Makhanlal Sarkar during the swearing-in ceremony of Suvendu Adhikari as the ninth Chief Minister of West Bengal.

The grand ceremony, held at Brigade Parade Ground, marked the formation of the first-ever Bharatiya Janata Party government in the state since Independence.

Prime Minister Modi arrived in Kolkata to attend the historic event and was welcomed by Chief Minister-designate Suvendu Adhikari and BJP’s West Bengal unit president Samik Bhattacharya. The three leaders took a ride in an open jeep across the venue, waving to thousands of BJP workers and supporters gathered at the ground.

The Brigade Parade Ground was decorated in saffron colours, while traditional drum performances and cultural displays added to the celebratory atmosphere.

After greeting supporters, the Prime Minister proceeded to the main stage, where he met several dignitaries, including Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Union Ministers, Chief Ministers of BJP-ruled states and senior party leaders.

One of the most emotional moments of the event came when Modi greeted 98-year-old Makhanlal Sarkar, one of the oldest BJP workers in West Bengal. The Prime Minister honoured him with a shawl and bowed to seek his blessings, drawing loud applause from the audience.

Makhanlal Sarkar is regarded as one of the pioneering grassroots leaders associated with the nationalist movement in post-Independence India. In 1952, he was arrested in Kashmir while accompanying Syama Prasad Mookerjee during a movement to hoist the Indian Tricolour there.

Following the formation of the BJP in 1980, Sarkar played a key organisational role in West Dinajpur, Jalpaiguri and Darjeeling districts. Within a year, he helped enroll nearly 10,000 party members.

From 1981 onward, he served continuously for seven years as a district BJP president, a rare achievement during a period when party leaders usually did not remain in the same organisational post for more than two years.

The ceremony comes a day after Amit Shah formally announced Suvendu Adhikari as the BJP Legislature Party leader following the party’s victory in the West Bengal Assembly elections.