'Paschimbanga Divas' not just a date but reminder of struggle that kept Bengal in India: Modi

Business To Business, Kolkata, 20^th June, 2026:  Narendra Modi on Saturday invoked the history of Bengal's Partition and the role of Syama Prasad Mookerjee to argue that June 20 was a pivotal date in ensuring that West Bengal remained part of India.
Addressing a programme marking Paschimbanga Divas in Tarakeswar, where he also inaugurated and laid the foundation stones for several development projects, Modi said that efforts had been made during Partition to include the whole of undivided Bengal within Pakistan.
The prime minister credited Syama Prasad Mookerjee and others who supported the creation of a separate West Bengal within India for preventing that outcome. He described June 20 as a defining moment in the state's history and linked those historical developments to contemporary political changes in Bengal.
Modi sought to connect the state's present trajectory with what he described as the aspirations that shaped the creation of West Bengal in 1947. He argued that recent political developments in the state reflect a continuing desire for progress, development, and stronger integration with national growth.
The speech combined historical references to the Partition period with discussions on current development initiatives, infrastructure projects, and the future direction of the state.