Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay’s descendant joins BJP ahead of Bengal poll

Sumitra Chattopadhyay, a fifth-generation descendant of littérateur Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay, on Thursday (February 26, 2026) joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The development comes ahead of Assembly elections in West Bengal when the BJP is highlighting the contribution of Chattopadhyay and the song Vande Mataram written by him.

Mr. Chattopadhyay, a former official with the State Labour Department, was formally welcomed into the party by BJP State president Samik Bhattacharya and Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Bhupender Yadav.

On creating jobs in Bengal

After being handed over the party flag, Mr. Chattopadhyay raised serious concerns regarding the State government policy on employment generation. The new entrant in the BJP criticised the West Bengal government’s Yuva Sathi scheme, which promises an unemployment allowance of ₹1,500 per month. He pointed out that the Trinamool Congress had discontinued a similar project, the Yuvashree scheme.

“Data of lakhs of youth associated with the employment exchange were deleted through an administrative order and replaced with the formation of an ‘employment bank’, where approximately 4 million youth were registered. Subsequently, the Yuvashree scheme was introduced, which was later discontinued,” Mr. Chattopadhyay said.

In September 2025, Sumitra Chattopadhyay and another descendant of Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay, Sajal Chattopadhyay, had joined Mr. Bhattacharya in raising the neglect of the ancestral house of the writer.

Welcoming Sumitra Chattopadhyay into the party, Union Minister Bhupender Yadav said that Vande Mataram, composed by Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay, strengthened the spirit of nationalism and patriotism across the country.

The BJP leadership, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah, have repeatedly reflected on the contributions of Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay and particularly Vande Mataram. A discussion was held in Parliament in December 2025 to mark 150 years of Vande Mataram.