Former governor C V Ananda Bose issued a letter to the people of West Bengal on Wednesday, stating that while his official tenure at Lok Bhavan had ended, his “journey” in the state was “far from over”.
The letter, posted on the official X handle of Lok Bhavan, comes just a day after a significant meeting between him and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. The farewell message reflected emotionally on his three-year tenure, describing Bengal as his “second home”.
Invoking the spirit of Mahatma Gandhi and Rabindranath Tagore, Bose expressed a deep-seated bond with the state.
“Several decades back, Mahatma Gandhi had said: ‘I am not able to leave Bengal and Bengal will not let me go.’ Today I share that feeling,” Bose wrote. “Such is the electrifying magnetism of this hallowed soil, that has produced great men and women who have shown the way to the country.”
He also quoted Tagore’s Gitanjali to discuss his connection with the common citizen: “Leave this chanting and singing and telling of beads… He is there where the tiller is tilling the hard ground and where the pathmaker is breaking stones.”
The former governor’s letter highlighted his grassroots engagement across the state. He recalled sharing meals in thatched huts, engaging with young scholars, and learning from the state’s intellectuals.
“I found God in the lanes and bylanes of Kolkata, the village and town roads, in the bright enthusiastic eyes of the children, in the affectionate look of the elderly,” he noted, adding that the “pride our brethren have in their social systems speaks volumes about the Bengal psyche”.
Expressing gratitude for the warmth he received, Bose mentioned cherishing “my sister’s embrace, that little boy’s pat on my back, that youngster’s firm handshake”.
Bose met Banerjee on Tuesday in a meeting described by sources as a formal farewell following his decision to step down as governor.
Bose submitted his resignation last week, marking the end of a term characterised by both high-profile cultural initiatives and occasional friction with the state government.
He concluded his address with a prayer for the state’s prosperity: “May Bengal reach glorious heights in the days to come. Let there be prosperity and good health for all. May Ma Durga protect my people. Vande Mataram.”