Kolkata, India: Just a day before Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s scheduled visit to North Bengal, a controversial remark by Trinamool Congress (TMC) minister Udayan Guha has ignited a political firestorm in West Bengal. Guha, without naming the Prime Minister, took a veiled swipe referencing his past as a tea seller and seemingly mocked the recent Operation Sindoor — a cross-border military operation hailed by the Centre as a strategic victory.

“From Tea to Vermilion”: Guha’s Comment Draws BJP Ire

Addressing a public event on Wednesday, Udayan Guha, the Minister for North Bengal Development, remarked, “Earlier, someone might have been in the tea business, today he may be in the vermilion business. Hot tea has turned into hot vermilion, and now it’s being sold in North Bengal.”

The comment, interpreted as a sarcastic reference to PM Modi’s campaign invoking the success of Operation Sindoor, was followed by Guha’s accusation that attempts were being made to inject “religious poison” and sow division among people.

The statement instantly drew strong criticism from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Bengal BJP chief Sukanta Majumdar took to social media platform X to call the remarks “treasonous” and “an insult to India’s Armed Forces and martyrs.”

“Guha’s words are not only disgraceful but undermine the sacrifices made by our soldiers in Operation Sindoor,” Majumdar wrote.

TMC Distances Itself from Guha’s Remarks

The backlash prompted the Trinamool Congress to officially distance itself from Guha’s controversial statement. Senior TMC leader Kunal Ghosh clarified that the party does not endorse the minister’s views.

“Our stand is clear. The party supports the Centre in matters of national security. We play the role of a responsible opposition and stand with the country in the fight against terrorism,” Ghosh said.

This marks a strategic balancing act by the Mamata Banerjee-led party — seeking to avoid appearing anti-national while defending political ground in a high-stakes electoral season.

Tensions High After Operation Sindoor

The remarks come in the wake of Operation Sindoor, a precision strike operation conducted by Indian security forces in retaliation to the Pahalgam terror attack earlier this month, which killed 26 civilians. The operation dealt a significant blow to Pakistani terror infrastructure and was widely celebrated by the BJP and supporters of the armed forces.

As PM Modi prepares to visit Alipurduar and Cooch Behar districts, where he is expected to lay the foundation stone for a ₹1,010 crore City Gas Distribution (CGD) project, the TMC has stepped up its own rhetoric.

Migratory Bird Jibe and Pending Dues

Earlier in the day, the TMC took another indirect swipe at the Prime Minister on X, calling him a “migratory bird” for his election-time visits to Bengal.
“Since the migratory birds are making their seasonal visit to Bengal, why not answer one simple question: Why is the Centre still withholding Bengal’s rightful dues of ₹1.7 lakh crore?” the post read.

Political Climate Heats Up Ahead of Modi’s Visit

With PM Modi expected to address a public rally in Alipurduar on Thursday, the political temperature in the region has surged. The BJP is expected to use both Operation Sindoor and central developmental projects to consolidate its position in North Bengal — a region that has seen significant electoral gains for the saffron party in recent years.

TMC, meanwhile, appears to be walking a tightrope — juggling populist regional rhetoric with national sensitivities, as political narratives collide on the Bengal campaign trail.

As both parties dig in for the next round of electoral combat, the battle for Bengal’s political mindshare shows no sign of cooling down.