Desk Correspondent , Kolkata - Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday touched the feet of 98-year-old Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) veteran Makhanlal Sarkar and sought his blessings during the swearing-in ceremony of Suvendu Adhikari as West Bengal’s first BJP Chief Minister at Kolkata’s Brigade Parade Ground. The emotional gesture, which drew loud cheers from party workers and supporters, occurred just before Adhikari took oath, marking a watershed moment as the BJP formed its first government in the state since Independence after securing 207 seats in the 2026 Assembly elections. Senior BJP leaders including Union ministers Rajnath Singh, JP Nadda, and Dharmendra Pradhan, along with several chief ministers, attended the event.

Makhanlal Sarkar, regarded as one of the BJP’s earliest grassroots organisers in West Bengal, has been associated with the nationalist movement since post-Independence years. In 1952, he was arrested in Kashmir while accompanying Syama Prasad Mookerjee during the campaign to hoist the Indian tricolour there. After the BJP’s formation in 1980, he served as organisational coordinator for West Dinajpur, Jalpaiguri, and Darjeeling districts, enrolling nearly 10,000 members within a year. He held the position of district president continuously for seven years from 1981, an exceptional tenure in that era. A resident of Siliguri, Sarkar’s lifelong dedication symbolises the party’s deep roots in the region.

The ceremony symbolises the end of Trinamool Congress’s 15-year rule and the dawn of what Adhikari termed the “Sonar Bangla” era of development under a “double engine” government. Adhikari, who defeated Mamata Banerjee in Bhabanipur, expressed pride in welcoming PM Modi for this historic transition. Modi’s respectful act towards Sarkar highlighted the party’s reverence for its veteran leaders and underscored themes of continuity and gratitude amid political change. The event has gone viral on social media, evoking widespread admiration for the Prime Minister’s humility and the veteran’s contributions.