Adhikari takes BJP's 'Save Democracy' march to Siliguri after Kolkata rally

West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari was due to lead a BJP "Save Democracy, Remove Anarchy" march through Siliguri on Tuesday afternoon, the first state-level programme the party has held in the north Bengal city since it came to power in the state, according to Uttarbanga Sambad.

The march, from Baghajatin Park to the Air View More junction (also called Mahatma Gandhi More), is the second in a run of rallies the BJP is holding across the state this week, after a large march in Kolkata on Monday.

The plan for the day

According to the Millennium Post, Adhikari was to land at Bagdogra airport around noon and join the march at about 2 pm, walking along Hill Cart Road before addressing a public meeting from a stage at the end of the route. He was also to meet representatives of the Rajbanshi and Kamtapuri communities, along with ministers and MLAs, at Uttarkanya, the state government's secretariat in Siliguri, before returning to Kolkata the same day.

Union Minister of State Sukanta Majumdar arrived at New Jalpaiguri station on Tuesday morning for the rally and was received by state Tourism Minister Shankar Ghosh, Siliguri Times reported.

Siliguri Metropolitan Police closed Hill Cart Road to city-bound traffic from Darjeeling More and restricted vehicles on stretches linking Air View More with Sevoke Road, Venus More and Court More, Siliguri Times reported, advising commuters to use alternative routes. The state's director of security, ADG Manoj Verma, and Siliguri Police Commissioner Syed Waquar Raza inspected the venues on Monday.

What the BJP says

The party says the campaign is meant to raise awareness about protecting democracy and to counter what it calls opposition misinformation, including over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. "The SIR process has been conducted properly and an error-free electoral roll has been prepared," Raju Saha, convenor of the BJP's Siliguri organising committee, told the Millennium Post. Bapi Goswami, a BJP state general secretary, told Uttarbanga Sambad that separatist forces with foreign backing wanted to damage democracy, and that the party would "take to the streets".

The Siliguri march draws mainly on the Darjeeling plains and Jalpaiguri district units, with a target of about 20,000 people, according to Uttarbanga Sambad, which also noted that it comes ahead of Siliguri Municipal Corporation elections.

The opposition's response

Opposition parties have mocked the idea of a ruling party marching to save democracy. Saman Pathak, the CPI(M)'s Darjeeling district secretary, told Uttarbanga Sambad that the "BJP is disoriented". Congress leader Sujoy Ghatak asked whether a party in power in both the state and at the Centre was admitting that democracy was in danger. The Trinamool Congress had not commented on the Siliguri march in the reports The Declaration reviewed.

What happens next

The BJP has scheduled further rallies in Krishnanagar on Wednesday and in Durgapur and Howrah on Thursday, with the chief minister expected to attend, according to Uttarbanga Sambad. The Declaration will update this story with what Adhikari says in Siliguri.