Amid relentless rains throughout Friday and forecast of its continuation on Saturday, in the aftermath of Cyclone Dana, Union home minister Amit Shah’smeeting in Arambagh on Sunday when he was scheduled to meet around 3,000 farmers from various agrarian districts in south Bengal, was cancelled.

This is the second time within a week when Shah’s event in Arambagh, has been cancelled. The previous meeting, planned for October 24 at the same venue, Kalipur Ground adjacent to Arambagh, was also called off due to the cyclone forecast.

A senior BJP leader in Calcutta, however, confirmed that Shah’s other engagements, including the party’s state executive committee meeting, will proceed as scheduled.

“Amit Shah ji is visiting Bengal on Sunday. The Arambagh event is cancelled but he will attend the rest of the programmes,” said the BJP leader.

Besides heading the extended state committee meeting, Shah will inaugurate a passenger terminal building and Maitri Dwar (Friendship Gate) at the India-Bangladesh border in Petrapole near North 24 Parganas’ Bangaon.

Shah is expected to outline a roadmap for the bypoll campaign and lay groundwork for the 2026 Assembly elections. He will also attend a Union government event in Bangaon, North 24 Parganas.

Biman Ghosh, the BJP’s Arambagh organisational district president, noted that cancelling the event was prudent given the forecast of rain through Saturday evening.

“The field has become waterlogged, and the situation will worsen if rain continues on Saturday. It’s better that Amit Shah Ji’s event was cancelled, as we doubted whether farmers would attend in large numbers amid such weather,” he added.

BJP leaders in Hooghly have been struggling to prepare for Shah’s scheduled Sunday visit amidst incessant rains. Some leaders expressed concerns about completing arrangements if the rain persists through Saturday.

“We only had 48 hours to set up the stage and pandal for Amit Ji’s meeting, but the constant rainfall has posed several challenges, slowing down preparations,” said a BJP leader.

As the relentless rains began early this morning, much of Kalipur Ground got inundated and the labourers could not start the work on the pandal or the stage.

“As there were no signs of the raingods relenting, we asked the decorators tobegin work amid the rains. They started, but it was not possible to proceed in full swing. So we were relieved as the event was cancelled,” the leader added.

The police and district administration held the Advance Security Liaison (ASL) meeting in Arambagh on Friday to discuss preparations for Shah’s visit, particularly focusing on his security.

A senior police officer inspected the ground on Friday.