Nandigram remains a battleground for Suvendu Adhikari and the Trinamul Congress, more than two years after he defected to the BJP and defeated Mamata Banerjee in the 2021 Assembly polls.

On Saturday, Adhikari and Trinamul leaders locked horns over an event commemorating the deaths of three land activists in 2007.

While Trinamul tried to downplay Adhikari’s credentials in the land movement by claiming that he had as aides former CPM supporters who had tortured the people of Nandigram, the BJP MLA gave a call to his supporters to unitedly fight against the ruling party’s corruption and defeat it.

Attacking the chief minister on “issues of corruption” and saluting the voters for defeating Mamata in the Assembly polls, Adhikari said: “Now you will have to uproot these thieves as well.”

Adhikari was speaking at a public event organised by the BJP in front of the Shaheed Minar, which was built in memory of the fallen activists in Nandigram.

Trinamul’s Kunal Ghosh, minister Akhil Giri and other party leaders paid tributes at a “Shaheed Bedi” about 200 meters from the Minar at 4.30am on Saturday, much before Adhikari’s 7am rally.

Speaking at the meeting, Ghosh said Adhikari had no moral right to commemorate “martyrs’ day”.

“Suvendu Adhikari is currently flanked by those behind the murders (during the land movement). He has betrayed the Bhumi Uchhed Protirodh Committee, which orchestrated the movement,” Ghosh told journalists on the sidelines of the event.

Till 2020, January 7 was primarily an Adhikari show but since he switched sides in December that year, there has been a tussle between the BJP and Trinamul over commemorating the deaths of Bharat Mondal, Sheikh Salim and Biswajit Maity.

A large number of police personnel were deployed in Nandigram on Saturday to avoid a clashe between the two camps.

Since Adhikari’s defection, Trinamul has been desperate to recover ground in East Midnapore, which is the home district of the BJP leader. Adhikari said Hindu voters aligned to the Left had helped him defeat Mamata in 2021. “Not all Leftists are bad.... A section of Hindu Leftists in Nandigram voted for me so that I could win, I admit that unhesitatingly,” Adhikari said. Sources said his statement assumes significance ahead of the rural polls as Adhikari intends to unite all anti-Trinamul forces in his favour. He also said that while in power the CPM had a more robust organisation than what Trinamul currently has.

“It is funny that when it comes to criticising Trinamul, Suvendu cannot help but refer to the Left. And when Trinamul criticises the BJP, they refer to us. We don’t want any certificate from Suvendu or Trinamul. In Bengal, we will remain with the people,” CPM central committee member Sujan Chakraborty said.

Later at a public meeting in East Midnapore’s Chandipur, Adhikari said the rural polls would be a “do or die” situation for BJP workers.