Officials said the Public Works Department is actively examining whether the heavily guarded complex can serve as Adhikari’s official residence, with senior Kolkata Police officers, led by Joint Commissioner Rupesh Kumar, visiting the premises on Sunday to review security arrangements. A final decision is yet to be taken.
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Constructed at a cost of more than Rs 180 crore, Soujanya was envisioned as a dedicated residential enclave for chief ministers and VVIPs. But despite being inaugurated in 2018 by former chief minister Mamata Banerjee, the expansive property has remained largely unoccupied for years.
The move would mark a striking political and symbolic transition in Bengal’s power landscape.
Located in Bhabanipur — the constituency where Adhikari defeated Mamata Banerjee in one of Bengal’s most consequential electoral battles — Soujanya sits less than 2 km from Banerjee’s Kalighat residence. The homes of the chief secretary and the director general of police are also situated within a kilometre of the complex, making it a strategically secure administrative hub.
Adhikari’s current personal and political identity, however, remains deeply tied to his ancestral home, Shantikunj, in Contai in East Midnapore district, where his family continues to live.Even after becoming chief minister, Adhikari has reportedly insisted that no barricades or excessive restrictions be placed around Shantikunj so that ordinary residents are not inconvenienced by security arrangements. But officials acknowledge that the heightened security requirements of the chief minister’s office may eventually necessitate a more centralised and controlled residence in Kolkata.
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Late Saturday night, while returning to Shantikunj through massive crowds of supporters, Adhikari struck a measured tone, repeatedly projecting himself as a leader above partisan lines.
“A CM has to weigh his words. So talk less and work more. I am a CM for all,” he told supporters.
As thousands lined the roads chanting slogans and waving BJP flags, Adhikari described the moment as one of political liberation.
“This is independence. Bhoy out, bhorsa in (fear out, trust in),” he said.
Amid chants of “Jai Shri Ram”, the chief minister invoked Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s familiar governance slogan.
“PM Modi said ‘sabka sath, sabka vikas’. At Brigade, he also said the same thing,” Adhikari said.
When sections of the crowd shouted, “Hisab liya jaega (everything will be accounted for),” the chief minister distanced himself from the rhetoric, replying: “I am not saying that.”
