Janata Unnayan Party (JUP) leader Humayun Kabir has announced that construction of a new Babri Masjid in West Bengal’s Murshidabad district will formally begin at noon on February 11, 2026. He said the foundation stone ceremony will be held in the Beldanga area, with an estimated gathering of around 5,000 people expected to attend the event.
Kabir said the programme will begin in the morning with recitation of verses from the Quran, scheduled between 10 am and 11:30 am, after which the construction work will be officially inaugurated at midday. He stated that the event is being organised as a religious and community gathering rather than a political one.
According to Kabir, prominent Muslim figures and community members from various parts of West Bengal will take part in the ceremony. He said many of the attendees would be educated individuals who are not associated with active politics, along with members of his trust and office-bearers of the newly formed Janata Unnayan Party.
The announcement comes weeks after Kabir was suspended from the Trinamool Congress (TMC) in early December, following controversy over his earlier declaration to lay the foundation stone of the mosque on December 6, the anniversary of the 1992 demolition of the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya. That earlier plan had triggered sharp political reactions and criticism.
At the time, senior TMC leaders publicly distanced the party from Kabir’s statements, saying he had ignored repeated warnings. The party subsequently suspended him, making it clear that it would not associate itself with the proposed project. Following his suspension, Kabir launched the Janata Unnayan Party and announced his intention to contest the upcoming Assembly elections in Murshidabad.
Kabir has since maintained that the new party was formed to work for ordinary people and has continued to defend the mosque project. He has also levelled allegations against Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, claiming she has links with the RSS, a charge that has added to the political tension surrounding the issue.
The renewed announcement regarding the mosque construction has drawn criticism from opposition parties, particularly the BJP, which has accused Kabir and the ruling party of attempting to polarise voters ahead of elections. Senior BJP leaders have alleged that Kabir is being used as a proxy to create communal tension in the state’s political landscape.
