Left Front leaders tap probhat pheri on first day of Bengali New Year, in Sector III
Telegraph | 17 April 2026
With elections just days away, Poila Baisakh proved to be a ripe opportunity for political leaders to connect with voters. Several Left Front leaders were seen at a probhat pheri on the first day of the Bengali New Year, in Sector III.
The procession by Bangla Navavarsha Udjapan Committee (Bidhannagar) began at Labony Estate and crossed Srabani Abasan, Falguni Abasan, Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan school, Purbachal, Tank 13, blocks FC, GC, and FE before culminating at Bangiya Granthagar Parishad in FD Block for cultural programmes. The rally was held in association with the Parishad.
In the first row of the processing was Ila Nandy, former CPM councillor of Bidhannagar Municipality and wife of veteran leader and former MP of Dum Dum Lok Sabha, Amitava Nandy.
“This committee has been around for years, and we have held many Naba Barsho processions like this before. It was discontinued due to the pandemic, but we felt we could revive it this time,” Nandy said. “This isn’t a political group. Yes, some members have political backgrounds, but everyone is welcome to join the celebrations to usher in the new year.”
The rally was quite colourful, with professionals playing the dhak, balancing pitchers on their heads and participants walking with placards sharing good wishes as well as posters of Bengal’s icons like Swami Vivekananda, Rabindranath Tagore and India’s first lady doctor Kadambini Ganguly.
Singers from AB Block’s music group Chhandaneer led the chorus with songs like Esho he Baisakh and Aloker ei jharna and the organising committee’s president Sukhabilas Barma, who is a former IAS and well-known bhawaiya singer, performed too.
“Till 2019, this group would come together just for this one gathering every year but we have now decided to hold multiple events to uphold our heritage round the year, said assistant secretary Basab Basak.
Also seen at the beginning of the walk was Ramola Chakraborty, wife of former Left Front minister Subhas Chakraborty. “The attempt of a government should be to protect its heritage, culture and language, which is not being done at the moment. What’s worse, Bengalis are being forced to leave Bengal as there are no jobs here,” said the FD Block resident.
Soumyajit Raha, the CPM candidate from the Bidhannagar Assembly constituency, was present too. “I am not here for publicity. I have always been connected to people, and it is that which has brought me here today,” said the HA Block resident, dressed in a flaming red shirt.
“Today is a day to celebrate refined culture and taste, both of which come from quality education. But in a state where education itself has exited, citizens will never learn to respect one another,” said Raha.
Along with Chakraborty, he then drove over to Rabindra Okakura Bhavan, where participants of another probhat pheri — by the NGO Initiative for Scientific and Public Awareness Target (Ispat) — were culminating their walk. While the duo did not stick around for the cultural programmes that followed, some of the participants met and clicked pictures with them.