PM Modi invokes 'Jai Maa Kali' in Bengal outreach

Ahead of the West Bengal Assembly elections, likely in April, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has penned an emotional open letter to voters, asserting that the State’s future will be shaped by the choices they make in the coming months.

- TIKAM SHARMA / SUPROTIM MUKHERJEE

The letter, written in Bengali and Hindi and circulated through the BJP’s door-to-door “Griha Sampark Abhiyan”, calls for a “Viksit Paschim Banga” free from corruption, violence and misrule.

Opening with “Jai Maa Kali” — also written as “Joy Maa Kali” — the Prime Minister sought to strike a chord with Bengal’s cultural and spiritual ethos. “In just a few months, the fate of West Bengal will be decided. The future of the coming generation and the direction it takes will depend on your well-thought-out decision,” he wrote, adding that those who dream of “Sonar Bangla” are in pain and that their suffering “pains my heart”.

He pledged to make Bengal developed and prosperous.

Describing the present condition of the State as “painful”, Modi said the destiny of Bengal’s youth would soon be in the hands of voters. “Your vote will decide Bengal’s future,” he asserted, framing the polls as a decisive moment to end what he termed “silent suffering” and political violence.