Kolkata's signboard politics: Bengali language mandate fuels TMC-BJP tussle

The Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) has issued a notice to traders making the Bengali language mandatory on all signboards. A notification on 30th of August specified that "all the signboards and signages will appear in Bengali language at the top of its board, and then it can follow suit with other languages." This directive, reiterated by Kolkata Mayor Firaad Hakim on 8th of August, comes against a backdrop of alleged atrocities against Bengali migrant workers in BJP-ruled states. The move is seen as having significant political ramifications, intensifying the ongoing friction between the state's Trinamool Congress and the BJP. The timing is considered crucial, with analysts viewing it in the context of the upcoming 2026 Assembly elections and the broader "Bengali language war".