“I may forget my name, but I will never forget Nandigram” - with this expression on her X handle, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today paid homage to the martyrs of Nandigram, recalling the 2007 land movement that reshaped Bengal’s political landscape.

“Humble tributes to all martyrs across the world, including those of Nandigram,” she wrote next on her X handle.

The post set the tone for a day of remembrance and political sparring, as both the Trinamool Congress (TMC) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) observed Nandigram Divas with separate programmes under tight security.

TMC’s national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee also posted a sharp message on X, drawing a parallel between the Left Front regime of 2007 and the current BJP-led central government.

“On this fateful day in 2007, the brave people of Nandigram rose up against the barbaric attempt by the then Left Front government to snatch away their land, dignity and right to live with honour. The face of the oppressor has only changed, the oppression remains the same,” he wrote, accusing the current regime of resorting to “silent, invisible rigging.”

Abhishek’s post ended with a political warning — “Bengal will resist, relentlessly and resolutely. We will crush their arrogance in the ballot box and consign this politics of exclusion to the dustbin of history.”

Leader of the Opposition and Nandigram MLA Suvendu Adhikari, once Mamata Banerjee’s close aide and now her rival, also marked the day with a tribute post.

“On the 18th anniversary of the ‘Blood-bathed Sunrise’ of the Nandigram Movement, to commemorate the martyrs of the Bhumi Uchhed Pratirodh Committee, I paid heartfelt respects and floral tributes at the Martyrs’ Memorial,” he wrote, adding, “Blood-soaked martyrdom; lest we forget Nandigram.”

Adhikari who paid his tribute to the martyrs in Nandigram today later accused the state government of neglecting the promises made to families of the martyrs. He alleged that several families are yet to receive death certificates or compensation.

“You (the Chief Minister) said you would build a residential school, but never did. Some families haven’t been compensated because they joined the BJP,” he claimed, asserting that he personally helped settle dues for some affected families.

To prevent clashes, the district administration scheduled the two programmes at different times.

Adhikari, leading the BJP’s observance between 8 and 10 a.m., arrived at the memorial carrying black flags but without party banners.

The TMC event followed later in the morning, led by state Transport Minister Snehasis Chakraborty, who offered floral tributes at the memorial.

Both events concluded peacefully under administrative supervision.

However CPI (M) held both BJP and TMC responsible for Nandigram. Speaking to UNI, Member of Rajya Sabha and CPI(M) lawyer Bikas Ranjan Bhattacharya said, “Nandigram was a planned conspiracy. There were proposals for two chemical hubs – one in Gujarat and one in Nandigram. The Nandigram hub was spoiled because of this movement and Gujarat got benefitted.”

“At that time both Suvendu Adhikari and Mamata Banerjee were in the same party and now they want to relive the past event in the name of Nandigram Diwas so that people don’t get to know the truth. It is proved today that there was no police excess, rather police had to work in defence,” Bhattacharya said.

Local residents noted that since 2020, Nandigram has witnessed this annual political face-off — two stages, two parties, two narratives — on the same soil that once united Bengal’s peasants in protest. The slogans may differ, but the memory of Nandigram continues to stir the political conscience of West Bengal.