Paschimbanga Dibas

On 20 June 1947, legislators from predominantly Hindu western parts of Bengal at the Bengal Legislative Assembly voted against the inclusion of western Bengal in Pakistan and for the Partition of Bengal to create West Bengal include it in the Indian Union. Following the verdict, the Governor of Bengal presided over the formation of a West Bengal cabinet on 3 July. Since 2014, 20th June is being celebrated as Paschimbanga Dibas or West Bengal Day in commemoration of the formation of West Bengal on 20 June 1947.
Background
In 1940, the Muslim League adopted the Lahore resolution which called for the formation of independent Muslim-majority states in North Western and Eastern parts of British India. Through the resolution the Muslim League legitimized the idea of 'Pakistan', earlier put forward by Chaudhury Mohammad Ali in 1933. Throughout the first half of 1940s, the idea of Pakistan gained currency in eastern Bengal. In 1946, the Muslim League fought the provincial elections on the single point agenda of establishment of Pakistan. In the elections in Bengal, the Muslim League 114 out of 119 reserved seats for Muslims, and formed the government. In August 1946, the Muslim League launched a program, called 'Direct Action', for the achievement of Pakistan. On 16 August 1946, designated as Direct Action Day by the Muslim League, large scale loot and massacre of Hindus started in Kolkata, followed by reprisals of Hindus, which later came to be known as the Great Calcutta Killings. In October 1946, there was a general massacre of the Hindus in parts of Noakhali and Tipperah districts in eastern Bengal.
After the killings in Kolkata and Noakhali, a section of the Bengali Hindu intellectuals under the leadership of Syama Prasad Mookerjee started a movement for the parition of Bengal and the formation of West Bengal for the Hindus of West Bengal. With extensive campaigning in the districts of Bengal and lobbying, the intellectuals were able to convince the British that the demand for West Bengal was justified. While drawing up the Partition plan for India, the Partition of Bengal was also taken into consideration along with that of the Punjab.
On 20 June 1947, the Bengal Legislative Assembly voted to decide the fate of Bengal with respect to the Partition of India. The first voting was held to decide whether Bengal would join the existing constituent assembly (i.e. India) or the new constituent assembly (i.e. Pakistan). The assembly voted 126-90 in favour of Pakistan. The speakers at the event credited Syama Prasad Mookerjee for the creation of West Bengal. At the event, environmentalist and human rights activist Dr. Mohit Ray reminded that West Bengal is not just a territory, it the space for the free existence of the Bengali Hindu people. In 2018, the Dr. Syama Prasad Mookerjee Research Foundation decided to celebrate Paschimbanga Dibas across the state.
Criticism
Political commentator Garga Chatterjee has criticized the event as politics of remembering, which helped Bharatiya Janata Party rake up communally divisive issues in West Bengal and gain popular support among masses. The event has also been criticized as an attempt to re-kindle the memories of the past that constitute the Hindu communal historical narrative.

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