Trinamool versus BJP in Durga Puja? PM Modi to participate in puja virtually on Shashti

Durga Puja in West Bengal has always been an opportunity for political parties to reach out to people. This time, ahead of the Assembly elections of 2021, the Durga Puja has turned into a veritable political battlefield. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be virtually participating in a Durga Puja on October 22 organised by the BJP Mahila Morcha.

On Wednesday, Mamata Banerjee inaugurated 69 Durga Puja pandals virtually from the state administrative headquarters Nabanna. These pandals are in 10 districts across the state. She also visited some physically, in Kolkata. The same will continue on Thursday and Friday, said officials. On October 22 – which is Shashti, the first day of the Durga Puja – the PM will participate in a Durga Puja virtually. It is being organised by the party’s women’s and cultural wing at the EZCC, a centre run by the Union Ministry of Culture. The Prime Minister will interact with people on various platforms to greet them for Durga Puja on that day.

Mamata Banerjee has been an integral part of the Durga Puja inaugurations across the city for the past few years. Some of her cabinet colleagues are themselves organisers of some of the biggest crowd-pullers Kolkata. In this background, the BJP has had a tough time over the past few years to make their leaders inaugurate Puja pandals. In view of the COVID-19 pandemic, the West Bengal government has offered Rs 50,000 to each of the barowari (publicly organised puja) committees for Durga Puja. There are over 35,000 pujas organised across the state.