Amit Shah in Bengal for two days as BJP pins resurrection hopes

Kolkata, May 04: Senior BJP leader and Union Home Minister Amit Shah will be in West Bengal for two days as BJP plans to upswing to continue and unseat the Trinamool Congress (TMC) from power as the Mamata Banerjee-led party was hit by a series of defections.

His several programmes include a visit to the India-Bangladesh border area of Teen Bigha to interact with BSF personnel and a cultural event in Kolkata to celebrate the inscription of 'Durga Puja' on the Unesco list of intangible cultural heritage, both on Friday, official sources told PTI.

Shah's visit to West Bengal comes at a time when the party looks to tone up its organisational machinery in the state, which has seen internal squabbles and defections since the 2021 assembly poll results.

State BJP leaders are looking at Shah's visit, his first since last year's elections, to boost the morale of party workers, allegedly at the receiving end of strongarm tactics of the ruling Trinamool Congress, address internal dissension and lay out a strategy for the party to recover its lost ground.

Following its big win in the polls, the TMC has poached on BJP members, including some MPs and MLAs, with the saffron party accusing the Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee-led party of unleashing violence against its workers.

On Thursday, Shah will flag off a boat ambulance at a floating Border Out Post (BOP) at Sutluj, lay the foundation stone of the 'Maitri Museum and Prahari Sammelan' in Haridaspur and address a public meeting in Siliguri in the evening.