The real poriborton Bengal needs is freeing grassroots politics from party grip April 3, 2021, 11:03 PM IST
The writer is a political analyst associated with Peoples Pulse
While pollsters and political pundits are busy speculating about various electoral outcomes in Bengal, there seems to be one thing they all seem to agree on the colossal weakening of the incumbent Trinamool Congress in recent years.
The argument that pro-Trinamool analysts are employing is that the residual charisma of Mamata Banerjee may spring a surprise on May 2, the overall decline of the TMC and an intense level of anti-incumbency notwithstanding. On the other hand, there are concerns that even if the BJP wins, it may end up endorsing the same politics of fear and revenge that has put the Trinamool on the back foot.
We Cannot Ignore the Leftâs Role in Fostering Soft Hinduisation in Bengal
In blithely placing the blame for religious polarisation on Mamata Banerjee, CPI-M has refused to consider its own failure in fighting Hindu Right tendencies that have long existed in Bengal.
CPI(M) supporters at a public rally in Bengal. Credit: Reuters
Politics14/Mar/2021
Whatever the outcome less than two months from now, Bengalâs keenly contested assembly elections â one of a kind in recent political history â forces a rethink on issues once believed to have been done and dusted in the state. Many perhaps came to believe that the endemic conflicts roiling politics in other parts of the country (particularly, in the Hindi heartland) would be dealt with in a fitting manner in Bengal. Many, quite likely, took comfort in the attractive notion of Bengali exceptionalism.
Nirupam Hazra | | Published 04.03.21, 04:59 AM
Political violence in West Bengal is a routine affair, particularly in an electoral season. The violence embedded in Bengal’s political landscape is believed to be anomalous with the progressive nature of Bengali society and the refinement of its culture.
Bengal, however, has had a long history of violence and politics being intertwined in different degrees and for different purposes. During British rule, Bengal was a fertile ground for violent revolutionary activities. There were several reasons that led a segment of Bengali society to turn towards violence in its fight against the colonial power. In the early twentieth century, the dominance of the
Battle for Bengal: Decoding Suvendu Adhikari s Newfound Love for Some Left and Congress Leaders
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Kolkata: It was a public rally and the place was Chandannagar in Bengal’s Hooghly district when Trinamool Congress turncoat Suvendu Adhikari on January 20 sprung a surprise with heaps of praise for Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee.
Then, on January 25, at a public rally in Tamluk in East Midnapore, the Bharatiya Janata Party leader waxed eloquent about big names of the CPI (M) like Promode Dasgupta, Benoy Choudhury, Geeta Mukherjee, Biswanath Mukherjee and Sukumar Sengupta.
“I was never against the politics of the Left Front. Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee was a good man. I was against people like Laxman Seth (also a Marxist leader) and ‘harmad’ (distorted version of the Dutch word ‘armada’, which means pirates or goons known for their brutality) of the Left Front,” Suvendu said.