Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday dined at Indian cricketing legend Sourav Ganguly's residence in South Calcutta, BJP party officials said.
Asked about the dinner meet-up, Ganguly who is also the BCCI chief, told reporters that though there was a lot of speculation, the dinner was because he had known Shah for long. The dinner was a close family affair where besides Ganguly, his wife Donna, who had earlier in the day performed at Victoria Memorial at a function which Shah attended, the cricketer's elder brother and sister-in-law played the role of hosts.
Accompanying Shah were BJP idealogue Swapan Dasgupta, BJP state president Sukanta Majumdar, and Leader of the opposition in West Bengal assembly Suvendu Adhikari.
Ganguly, who at one time had been fondly dubbed `Prince of Calcutta' for his cricketing prowess, told reporters, Bohu kotha rote (many speculations are rife), but I have known him (Shah) since 2008. While playing, I used to meet him. There's nothing more than that. He had also pointed out he had worked with his son in the Board of Control for Cricket in India.
However, analysts point out that Ganguly at one time was rumoured to be the man BJP wanted to snare for a leadership role in the party's Bengal unit and possibly even its chief ministerial face. However, the master cricketer has notably steered away from politics, confining himself to cricket administration till now.
"It is a regular practice for senior BJP leaders to have lunch or dinner at the residence of noted personalities during their visit to any state," BJP state president Sukanta Majumdar, who is facing up to severe infighting within his party unit, had earlier said.
On Thursday, Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, with whom too the Ganguly has excellent relations, responding to queries on Shah's plans to visit Ganguly, had quipped, "What is the harm? He (Shah) loves rosogolla (a popular Bengali sweetmeat), and I would urge Sourav to keep a large stock of Rosogollas."
It is not known whether Shah did have rosogollas, though sources said assorted Bengali sweets and stuffed puris (fried bread) were on the menu.
Shah on Friday had earlier said 25 years from now, India will occupy the top position globally, having made great strides in education, the arts and defence in the past 75 years.
Addressing a function at the Victoria Memorial to commemorate the 75th year of Independence and the UNESCO declaration of Bengal's Durga Puja as an intangible global heritage, Shah said the global body's honour was a matter of pride for the entire country.
"In every sector - education, arts, defence, you name it, India has made great strides in the past 75 years. It has gained respect internationally as a great power when the country reaches 100th year of Independence, India will occupy the top position in the world," Shah predicted.
Speaking on the issue of UNESCO's honour for Bengal's Durga Puja, he said "it is not only a matter of pride for the state, but for the entire country."
Shah said though people talk of women's empowerment today, India's ancient scriptures already recognised it many centuries earlier. Women's empowerment has been there in Bharat in all these years," he said.
"Durga puja is worshipping the goddess, `Stree Shakti' (feminine power) is women's empowerment. She is one power whom all the Gods (in the Hindu triity) - Brahma, Bishnu, Maheshwar - invoked to slay the demon. India had shown the world how to celebrate women's power for ages," the home minister said.
Shah pointed out apart from Durga puja which was conferred UNESCO honour in December 2021, India got UNESCO recognition earlier for Kumbh Mela and Yoga.
"The entire world turns to India for our rich cultural heritage while the entire country is proud of the rich cultural heritage of Bengal," he added.
Shah paid glowing tribute to the freedom fighters who "have made it possible for us to breath in a country freed by their sacrifices." He referred to revolutionaries like Khudiram Bose from Bengal in this context.
In the freedom movement as in arts Bengal showed the country the way, he said. Paying rich compliments to the artists in the cultural show, he said "I can understand Bengali lyrics in the song and dance shows. They shows the rich cultural heritage of India which is a confluence of different strands - from Gujarat to Bengal, from Kashmir to Kanyakumari. Unity in diversity is India's strength."