On Wednesday afternoon, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee took to the streets of Kolkata to spearhead a significant protest march against the alleged mistreatment of Bengali-speaking individuals in states governed by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Accompanied by other party leaders, including Trinamool Congress (TMC) National General Secretary Abhishek Banerjee, she led thousands in the march, which commenced from College Square in central Kolkata at approximately 1:45 PM.

The march is set to conclude at Dorina Crossing in Dharmatala.

Prior to the march, security measures were intensified in the vicinity, with around 1,500 police officers deployed to oversee the streets. Traffic management directives were also issued in consideration of the rally.

These protests are taking place a day before Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s planned visit to the state.
With less than a year remaining until the assembly elections in West Bengal, the TMC is amplifying its concerns regarding what it claims to be a systematic approach to linguistic profiling, unlawful detentions, and efforts to label Bengali speakers as “illegal immigrants.”

Typically, the TMC avoids organizing significant public events leading up to its annual Shahid Dibas rally on July 21. However, a series of recent occurrences, such as the detention of migrant workers in Odisha, eviction actions in Delhi, and a notice issued to a farmer in Cooch Behar by a foreigners’ tribunal in Assam, seem to have prompted the party to change its strategy.

The protests also provide insight into the focus of the TMC’s campaign for the upcoming assembly elections, scheduled for mid-next year. The party appears to be heavily investing in rekindling its emotional bond with voters through a campaign that merges identity politics with grassroots mobilization.