West Bengal CM apologises for Durga ad showing 11 hands

West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari has tendered an apology to the public after a state government advertisement published in newspapers on Monday depicted Goddess Durga with eleven hands instead of the traditional ten.

Speaking at a Durga Puja coordination meeting on Monday evening, Mr. Adhikari said, "As the CM of West Bengal, I apologise for the error. The people responsible have received a stern warning. In the future, the Government will be careful."

The advertisement, which appeared in several Bengali dailies, quickly became a flashpoint on social media and within political circles. Opposition parties, including the Trinamool Congress and the Communist Party of India (Marxist), were quick to criticise the visual gaffe.

The Trinamool Congress's official social media handle called the incident an insult to Bengali culture, stating that a government claiming to represent Bengal appears disconnected from its traditions and festivals. Trinamool MLA Kunal Ghosh questioned how the image, which is meant to depict the Dashabhuja form of the Goddess with ten arms, ended up showing eleven. "They talk about Sanatan culture; they say distortion won't be tolerated, yet they themselves distorted it," he remarked.

Another Trinamool MLA, Madan Mitra, said that as a Bengali, he could not accept the distortion. Netizens also joined the chorus of criticism, labelling the error as disrespectful to Bengali tradition.

However, BJP State President Samik Bhattacharya sought to downplay the controversy. He described the slip-up as a gross error by the advertising agency and remarked that the extra hand only makes Maa Durga "stronger". He added that the mistake would be rectified and should not be politicised.

In a sarcastic post, CPI(M) leader Shatarup Ghosh shared the advertisement image, suggesting the extra hand was intended to deliver a "resounding slap" to anyone attempting to force Bengalis to eat vegetarian food during the Puja festivities.