Bengal CM
PM Modi seeks blessings of 97-year-old Makhan Lal Sarkar during West Bengal CM Suvendu Adhikari's oath-taking ceremony. Who is he?
West Bengal witnessed a historic political moment on Saturday as Bharatiya Janata Party strongman Suvendu Adhikari took oath as the saffron party’s first Chief Minister in the state. However, amid the grandeur of the ceremony, the spotlight also fell on a 97-year-old BJP veteran whose presence on stage drew special attention — and even prompted Prime Minister Narendra Modi to warmly embrace him and seek his blessings by touching his feet.
The man at the centre of the emotional moment was veteran BJP worker Makhan Lal Sarkar, a resident of Siliguri.
The crowd erupted in cheers as Modi hugged Sarkar and bowed before him in a rare public display of respect for one of the party’s oldest grassroots leaders.
PM Modi on a social media post said: "During the swearing in ceremony in Kolkata, had the opportunity to meet Shri Makhanlal Sarkar Ji. A devout nationalist, he worked with Dr. Mookerjee and was even arrested in Jammu and Kashmir while accompanying him. He dedicated his life to our Party, expanding its base across West Bengal, inspiring people from all walks of life to join the Party."
"We in the BJP are proud that we have such motivating figures who have worked among the people and strengthened our Party."
Also read: Bengal turns a new page: Suvendu Adhikari takes oath as CM amid massive NDA show of strength
Sarkar remains one of the earliest political workers associated with the nationalist movement in post-Independence India.
According to media reports, Sarkar was arrested in 1952 in Jammu and Kashmir when he accompanied BJP ideologue Syama Prasad Mookerjee during the historic movement to hoist the Indian tricolour in the Himalayan region.
After the formation of the Bharatiya Janata Party in 1980, Sarkar became the organisational coordinator for West Dinajpur, Jalpaiguri and Darjeeling districts, playing a crucial role in strengthening the party’s grassroots base in North Bengal.
Also Read: 'Suvendu da had defeated Didi in her home turf': Amit Shah slams Mamata Banerjee as BJP sweeps Bengal
He reportedly enrolled nearly 10,000 members within a year — a remarkable organisational feat during the BJP’s early years.
From 1981 onward, Sarkar served continuously for seven years as district president, a rare distinction in the party’s organisational history, according to reports.
History created as Suvendu Adhikari takes oath as Bengal CM
The historic Brigade Parade Ground in the heart of Kolkata witnessed yet another landmark transition in West Bengal’s political history as Suvendu Adhikari was sworn in as Chief Minister at a grand ceremony attended by Prime Minister Modi and top NDA leaders.
With his swearing-in, Adhikari — hailed as the “giant killer” for defeating former Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee in two successive high-voltage electoral battles — became the first BJP leader to assume the Chief Minister’s office in West Bengal.
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West Bengal Governor R. N. Ravi administered the oath of office amid thunderous cheers from a massive gathering of supporters.
The moment marked the BJP’s historic rise in a state long dominated by the All India Trinamool Congress, which had governed West Bengal for 15 years after ending the 34-year Left Front rule in 2011.
The swearing-in ceremony symbolised not just a change of government, but the beginning of a new political chapter in Bengal’s evolving power landscape.
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