West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday (December 9, 2025) demanded an apology from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, alleging that he insulted novelist Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay by calling him “Bankim Da”. Addressing a rally in Cooch Behar district, Ms Banerjee said the Prime Minister was not even born when the country gained independence and yet he chose to casually address one of the greatest cultural icons of Bengal.

“You did not show him even the minimum respect he deserved. You should apologize to the country for this,” he said. The author was referenced by the Prime Minister during a discussion in the Lok Sabha on Monday (December 8, 2025) to commemorate 150 years of Vande Mataram, the national song written by Chattopadhyay.

TMC MP Saugata Roy objected to the use of suffix ‘Da’ and urged the PM to say ‘Bankim Babu’ instead. Mr Modi immediately acknowledged the sentiment, saying, “I will call Bankim ‘Babu’.

Thank you, I respect your sentiments,” and light-heartedly asked if he could still address Roy as ‘Dada’. Taking aim at the BJP, Ms Banerjee claimed that if it comes to power in the state, it will destroy the culture, language and heritage of Bengal. He also claimed that the assembly elections in the state will be declared immediately after the publication of the final voter list after the SIR exercise, so that no one can challenge it in court.