Trinamul’s heir-apparent Abhishek Banerjee on Sunday ended his silence on Suvendu Adhikari without naming him and took on the saffron camp.

Adhikari also made his first public appearance since his resignation from the state cabinet, at an “apolitical” event at Mahishadal in Haldia to honour freedom fighter Ranajit Boyal, where he refrained from any political comment.

In his rally at Satgachhia, the 33-year-old Diamond Harbour MP and Mamata’s nephew did not take Adhikari’s name, but quoted him liberally.

“How many of us have descended by parachute? How many of us have ascended by elevators? These concepts are alien to Trinamul….Had I taken an elevator, I too would have held a bunch of posts. Had I taken a parachute, I would have been the candidate from Calcutta South,” he said to loud cheers from thousands. Mamata had won from Calcutta South for decades.

Abhishek was responding to recent public remark by Adhikari that in his (Adhikari’s) long political journey he took the stairs, not a parachute or an elevator. Sources close to him said the barb was aimed at Abhishek.

Abhishek likened Trinamul and Mamata to “mother” and said there “couldn’t be any betrayal of the mother”.

Adhikari at Mahishadal spoke about “nationalist” aspects of the freedom movement, the Constitution, and his commitment to Bengal and Bengalis.

He said he would host a slew of events through December and honour freedom fighter Khudiram Bose on his birth anniversary on December 3. That is a day before Mamata’s virtual meeting with the leadership and four days before her “mega” rally in Midnapore, an Adhikari bastion.

Abhishek lambasted the BJP for “fearing” to name him, referring to him as bhaipo or bhatija. “I will take names...Amit Shah is an outsider. Kailash Vijayvargiya is an outsider. Dilip Ghosh is a goon... I dare them to do the same.”

Suvendu in Mahishadal. Jahangir Badsa

BJP state chief Dilip Ghosh later said names need not be taken as people know who the nephew is. “They (Trinamul) have been goons for years. Now is my time. I will be a goon, if need be...”said Ghosh.

Sources close to Mamata said Mamata seems ready to look beyond Adhikari, who has not yet resigned from Trinamul, and does not appear to harbour doubts about his joining the BJP.

On Sunday, sources said, she decided to hold a major rally at Bongaon on December 9 to woo the Matua electorate.

Before his resignations on Thursday and Friday, Adhikari had been the cabinet minister in charge of three departments, besides the chairperson of the Hooghly River Bridge Commissioners and Haldia Development Authority.

Abhishek told the large crowd: “To fulfill selfish objectives, if somebody betrays the mother, will you spare them? If one sells his backbone to serve the cause of another party to favour it against Mamata Banerjee, will you spare them? Trinamul workers will issue a fitting reply to treachery.”

Some 10km from Adhikari's dais, Trinamul youth wing held a rally led by ministers Rajib Banerjee and Sujit Bose, who said the party had only one leader, Mamata.