CPI(M) leaders on Sunday (September 13, 2026) hit back at West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari over his criticism of the party’s bookstalls at Durga Puja pandals, saying the stalls carry books on a wide range of subjects, including the lives and works of Indian icons.

Mr. Adhikari had accused the CPI(M) of selling works of "foreign" communist leaders such as Karl Marx and Vladimir Lenin while ignoring Indian icons, including Swami Vivekananda and Ramakrishna Paramhansa, at its bookstalls during Durga Puja. 

On Thursday, the Chief Minister alleged that Left leaders have deliberately been targeting the icons of Sanatan Dharma. He also appealed to Durga Puja committees not to allow any Left-affiliated bookstalls near pandals during the festival, which would boast the word ‘Sharodotsav’ (festival of autumn) instead of Durga Puja. 

The CPI(M) and its affiliates have traditionally put up bookstalls near Durga Puja pandals, selling Marxist literature, party publications and other books. The practice dates to 1954, when the first such CPM-associated stall was set up at Park Circus on the initiative of veteran Communist leader Muzaffar Ahmed.

“The books they sell do not include even one on Swami Vivekananda. You will not find a book on Swami Lokeshwarananda or a book on Swami Pranavananda. Instead, you will find books on foreigners like Karl Marx and Lenin,” Mr. Adhikari alleged while addressing a gathering after inaugurating a Ganesh Chaturthi celebration in Kestopur. 

CPI(M) reacts

Reacting to his remarks, CPI(M) State secretary Md. Salim said the Chief Minister’s statement amounted to an attack on democracy. “Democracy means co-existence of a variety of cultures and ideas. The CM’s statement sounds like accusing a sweet shop of not keeping cashews and raisins. RSS’s Gita Publication also sells books on Hindu religion. Nobody asked them why they don’t keep Karl Marx’s book. This is how democracy functions,” he said at a press conference in Murshidabad on Sunday (September 13, 2026).

The CPI(M) also uploaded photographs of its stalls on social media to show that books by Swami Vivekananda were available at the stalls every year. “The Chief Minister doesn’t even know what we sell exactly. He cannot dictate what we should sell at our bookstalls. He has no such right. Our progressive bookstalls have always offered books on a wide range of subjects, including the lives and works of Indian icons such as Swami Vivekananda, Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar and Rabindranath Tagore,” said senior CPI(M) leader Sujan Chakraborty. 

He accused the Chief Minister of trying to incite people during the festive season, saying the CPI(M) would never accept such attempts.