Kolkata, 11 May (H.S.) : West Bengal BJP president and Rajya Sabha MP Samik Bhattacharya on Monday said that the newly formed government under Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari would function as the “Government of West Bengal” and not merely as a “BJP government”.

Speaking to mediapersons at the BJP’s state headquarters in Salt Lake, Bhattacharya said the administration would operate independently while maintaining coordination with the party to ensure implementation of promises made in the party’s pre-election Sankalp Patra.

“The state government will function in its own way. The connection between the government and the party will ensure smooth implementation of the commitments made in the Sankalp Patra. The new government will be the ‘West Bengal Government’ and not a ‘BJP government’. That is our promise,” Bhattacharya said in the presence of Chief Minister Adhikari.

Earlier in the day, Adhikari and Bhattacharya attended an organisational meeting at the BJP state headquarters before the Chief Minister proceeded to Nabanna, the state secretariat at Mandirtala, to chair the first cabinet meeting of the new government.

Following the cabinet meeting, Adhikari is also scheduled to hold separate meetings with senior bureaucrats and top police officials of the state administration.

Before leaving for Nabanna, Bhattacharya reiterated that the new administration would function without political bias and focus on governance.

At Nabanna, Adhikari was accorded a ceremonial Guard of Honour upon arrival. However, sources in the administration indicated that the new government would function from Nabanna only temporarily and operations would eventually shift back to the historic Writers' Buildings in central Kolkata.

Addressing reporters, Adhikari also emphasised that his administration would follow a model of collective leadership.

“I will not run the new government alone. We will run the administration collectively,” Adhikari said, adding that he would not impose decisions on cabinet colleagues.

Hindusthan Samachar / Satya Prakash Singh