News Analysis India

Tag: Bengal elections

  • BJP leader visits Sisir Adhikari at his residence, speculation rife over Trinamool MP’s next move

    By PTI
    NANDIGRAM: BJP MP Locket Chatterjee on Saturday visited the residence of TMC’s Lok Sabha member Sisir Adhikari, who is also the father of political heavyweight and the saffron party’s Nandigram candidate Suvendu Adhikari, raising speculation that the veteran leader might switch camp ahead of the Bengal assembly polls.

    Chatterjee, who had lunch at the Adhikari residence at Contai, stressed that it was “courtesy call”, and Sisir Adhikaris political move was not discussed during the meeting, even as political corridors went abuzz with murmurs that the TMC MP might join the saffron camp during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the state later this month.

    “It was a courtesy lunch. Sisirda is a senior politician and the Adhikari family is synonymous with Medinipur (of which Nandigram is a part). He had once praised my Lok Sabha speech. We share good rapport. He requested me to visit him again,” the BJP leader said.

    She, however, clarified that the BJP would welcome the TMC MP with open arms if he decides to join the party.

    Sisir Adhikari, on his part, told reporters that two of his sons are BJP members, and “Locket visiting his residence should not surprise anyone.

    Why should anyone have their eyebrows raised when a leader makes a courtesy visit?” Veteran TMC leader Sougata Roy, when approached, said “Sisirda has largely remained inactive in the recent times. We will urge him not to join the ‘dal badal’ (party changing) game, given his advanced age and ailments.”

    BJP spokesperson Shamik Bhattacharya claimed that all of Purba Medinipur wants the Adhikari family patriarch to join the saffron camp.

    Notably, Suvendu Adhikari and his brother Soumendu, who also joined the BJP two months ago, were not at home during the BJP MP’s visit to their residence.

    Their other brother, Dibyendu — also a TMC MP – was present at the lunch meet.

  • Bengal polls: Farmer leader Rakesh Tikait visits Nandigram, urges people not to vote for BJP

    Express News Service
    KOLKATA: Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM) leader Rakesh Tikait on Saturday visited Nandigram, the epicentre of Bengal’s fierce electoral battle from where CM Mamata Banerjee is contesting against her former aide and BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari.

    Tikait was received by TMC leader Dola Sen at Kolkata airport from where he left for Nandigram in East Midnapore district and later addressed a Mahapanchayat.

    While addressing the rally in Nandigram, Tikait urged the crowd not to vote for the BJP. “The new farm laws will ruin farmers’ future. Crops are not being purchased at MSP. We appeal not to vote for the BJP as it robbed the entire country. Vote for the candidates who can defeat the BJP instead,” Tikait said in his address.

    Without naming Adhikari, Tikait slammed him for switching parties ahead of the elections.

    Castigating BJP’s rice collection initiative, the farmer leader said, “They are collecting rice not to open a community kitchen. BJP has no fund crisis. They are actually trying to collect votes in favour of them in the name of collecting rice.”

    ALSO READ | BJP has to win Bengal to expand ideological footprint, secure eastern borders: Dilip Ghosh

    Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee had extended her support to SKM’s movement by staging a sit-in demonstration at Delhi borders.

    Trinamool Congress leaders said SKM leaders’ Bengal visit urging people not to vote for the BJP would result in the ruling party’s victory. “The entire nation is witnessing the farmers’ protest at Delhi borders. 

    Nandigram and Singur, where the SKM leaders will also address a rally, are the state’s agricultural zones. Cultivation is the main source of livelihood there. Tikait’s appeal will definitely have an impact in the upcoming elections,” said a senior TMC leader.

    Other SKM leaders such as Balbir Singh Rajewal, Gurnam Singh Charuni, Darshan Pal, Yogendra Yadav, Yudhbir Singh, Manjit Singh, and Himanshu Tiwari have also arrived in Bengal to hold rallies under the banner of West Bengal Kisan Mahapanchayat. 

  • Bengal polls: BJP’s big daddies to descend on Nandigram to campaign for Suvendu Adhikari

    Express News Service
    KOLKATA:  West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s decision to contest from Nandigram has forced the state BJP to recalibrate its battle strategy for East Midnapore district. The party plans to bring heavyweights like Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath to address rallies in the district.

    Sources in the BJP said Modi will address a rally on March 20 at Contain, around 50 km from Nandigram, the seat where Mamata and her former lieutenant and BJP’s star candidate Suvendu Adhikari are locked in a face-off. “We are trying to arrange a rally at the same venue in Nandigram’s Tekhali, from where Mamata had announced her candidature, which Adityanath will address,” said a BJP leader.

    Shah is likely to visit Bengal on March 15 and March 19. “We are in the process to organise a rally at a place located in the heart of Nandigram which the home minister will address,” said the BJP leader.The visit being planned by the BJP brass to Nandigram and East Midnapore is aimed at defeating Mamata. “The contest between her and Adhikari has become a prestige issue for the Bengal CM and the Union home minister. It was Shah who gave a nod to the proposal of fielding Suvendu against Mamata,” said a state BJP leader.

    It was Mamata’s participation in the 2007 peasant movement in Nandigram-Singur against land acquisition for Tata Nano project by the then Left government that had catapulted her into power in 2011. Sources in the saffron camp said the party is showcasing its Hindutva rhetoric aggressively in Nandigram, eyeing to consolidate Hindu votes. 

    Minorities form around 40 per cent of the total electorates in the constituency. “In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, BJP had failed to concentrate the non-Muslim votes in its favour. The constituency has around 2.5 lakh voters. The TMC had secured a lead of more than 68,000 votes in the general election despite a strong wave of nationalism across the country.

    This means a majority of Hindu voters did not welcome our candidate in 2019. This is why we need heavyweights to polarise Hindu electorate,” said a BJP leader. TMC functionaries have already been camping in Nandigram. They have rented a two-storey house for Mamata and four others and 80-odd party leaders and workers who will be playing the role of architects to secure the CM’s victory.

    30%of Nandigram’s population is Muslim, which has stood solidly behind the TMC over the last decade. Suvendu Adhikari is eyeing the majority of the rest 70%

    20Number of security personnel, including the elite SSW, IB, responsible for guarding West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee

    CBI, ED summon TMC leaders The CBI and the ED on Friday issued summons to Trinamool Congress leaders Partha Chatterjee and Madan Mitra respectively in connection with separate ponzi scam cases. The ED also summoned ex-TMC Rajya Sabha members  businessman Swapan Sadhan Bose and journalist Ahmed Hassan Imran  in connection with a case.

    ‘BJP, Cong deceived Assam tea workers’A students’ body in Assam launched a campaign on Friday to remind tea workers how they were deceived by various political parties. Called ‘political awareness meetings’, these gatherings were held by the All Assam Tea Tribe Students’ Association (AATTSA). The focus of discussions with the workers is on their daily wage. 

  • Bengal, Assam poll outcome may cast shadow on BJP-JD(U) government in Bihar

    Express News Service
    PATNA:  Regardless of who wins in Bengal and Assam elections, the outcome will have an impact on the BJP-JD(U) alliance in Bihar. The ruling JD-U has decided to contest over 22 seats in Bengal and 32 in Assam, mostly in “friendly fights” with the BJP.

    JD-U sources said the party became more aggressive in the two states after six of its MLAs defected to the BJP in Arunachal Pradesh late last year. The party in these two states is focusing on voters who migrated from Bihar, UP and Jharkhand. As per a rough estimate, around 5% of the electorate in Assam and West Bengal are migrant voters.

    “The JD-U is not dependent on the Hindi-speaking voters alone; the Nitish Kumar model of development and governance is widely appreciated by the people of the two states. So, the party has an electoral base,” said Sanjay Verma, party in-charge of Northeast.

    Sources in various parties in Bihar went to the extent of saying that the results of Bengal and Assam would decide the survival of the NDA government in Bihar. Many observers believe that if the BJP comes to power in West Bengal and Assam, then its dominance in the Bihar government will also grow.

    “The JD-U has grown vindictive after the Arunachal episode,” said a senior politician, pointing to some recent statements of JD-U and BJP that reflect the growing mistrust. Sometime back, JD-U’s former MLA Shayam Bahadur Singh had told party workers to strengthen Nitish and the party as no one knew how long the alliance would survive.

  • Bengal polls: Farmer leaders reach state to campaign against BJP

    Express News Service
    KOLKATA: The heat of farmers protest over the new farm laws have reached poll-bound Bengal as eight leaders of Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM) arrived in Kolkata on a three-day visit to campaign against the BJP. 

    The farmer leaders from Punjab will address five rallies including the ones in Nandigram and Singur — the Assembly constituencies where Mamata Banerjee had spearheaded the movement against forcible land acquisition and emerged as a firebrand leader.

    Senior leaders Rakesh Tikait, Balbir Singh Rajewal, Gurnam Singh Charuni, Darshan Pal, Yogendra Yadav, Yudhbir Singh, Manjit Singh, and Himanshu Tiwari will hold rallies under the banner of West Bengal Kisan Mahapanchayat. The trend started on March 4, when farmer leader Rajinder Singh Deep Singh addressed a rally organised by the forum to save Constitution and West Bengal from the fascist forces.

    The SKM’s visit to Nandigram is said to be significant as the East Midnapore pocket has become the epicentre of the fierce battle between the ruling TMC and the BJP as the Chief Minister is contesting the election from the constituency by taking on her former aide Suvendu Adhikari.

    ALSO READ | Two days after ‘attack’, CM Mamata Banerjee discharged from Kolkata hospital

    “While addressing a rally in Haldia last month, Prime Minister Narendra Modi tried to woo the farmers in East Midnapore. The SKM is not urging the electorates to vote in favour of us. Their agenda is to take the people of Bengal into confidence so that they do not vote for the BJP in the upcoming Assembly elections. Voting against the BJP will result in our electoral dividend,” said a senior TMC leader.

    “We are not supporting any political party and telling people whom to vote for. Our only appeal is to vote against the BJP and gives it to anyone who is capable of defeating the BJP,” said activist Yogendra Yadav.

    The SKM also issued a letter urging Bengal’s farmers not to vote for the saffron brigade. In the letter, the SKM said, “BJP’s defeat in the election will force the Centre to repeal the farm laws.”

    Citing the SKM’s narrative, the TMC leader said the appeal of the farmers’ organisation, which caught national attention by staging demonstrations at Delhi borders, would directly benefit the TMC. “They are appealing to the people for votes for any political party who can defeat the BJP. In Bengal, BJP made deep inroads riding the vote-share of the CPI(M). Our Chief Minister supported SKM’s movement. It is clear to Bengal’s electorates that we the only political force in the state which can defeat the BJP,” he said.

  • Bengal elections: Theatre artist dropped from two projects for joining BJP, calls it ‘cultural crisis’

    By ANI
    KOLKATA: Bengali theatre artist and director Kaushik Kar who has been allegedly dropped from two theatre projects after the actor joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) calls the action a ‘cultural crisis’ in poll-bound West Bengal.

    Speaking to ANI, Kar said, “I, as an individual, have joined a particular party. I am a theater artist. Our friends with whom I worked in the past are believers of left ideology. They took the decision of dropping me without a consultation. The news circulated and I got to know it from other sources. It is definitely a cultural crisis.”

    The copyright of ‘Auto’, a novel by Nabarun Bhattacharya that was rewritten by Kar for the theatrical adaptation has been snatched away from him. He was the director and producer of the play.

    “I took permission from Nabarun Bhattacharya’s son to stage ‘Auto’ but suddenly the copyright has been taken away from me stating it is a Left-inclined story. I am sure if Bhattacharya was alive, he would have never done this,” he said.

    ALSO READ | Bengal elections 2021: Ramdas Athawale’s RPI to contest 15-20 seats, to support BJP

    Kar was also dropped from playing a character named ‘Akhlaq’ in a play that is based on an incident in Uttar Pradesh’s Dadri in 2015 where a man was lynched to death that hit national headlines.

    The actor also alleged that he has been dropped from Sourav Palodhi’s adaptation of Utpal Dutta’s ‘Ghum nei’.

    There has been induction of influx of artists in Trinamool Congress (TMC) as well as BJP in the last few months in the poll-bound state.

    West Bengal Assembly elections will be held in eight phases starting from March 27 with the final round of voting taking place on April 29. The counting of votes will take place on May 2.

    The state is likely to witness a triangular contest this time with TMC, Congress-Left alliance and the BJP in the fray.

  • Bengal elections 2021: Ramdas Athawale’s RPI to contest 15-20 seats, to support BJP

    By ANI
    NEW DELHI: The Republican Party of India (RPI) will contest 15-20 seats in the upcoming West Bengal assembly elections, RPI chief Ramdas Athawale informed on Friday.

    Speaking to ANI, Athawale said, “Looking at the current situation in West Bengal, I think Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) will come into power. Mamata Banerjee has been in power for 10 years. Now people want a change. The Republican Party of India will contest on 15-20 seats in West Bengal and support BJP there.”

    RPI is an ally of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) led by the BJP.

    Asked about the alleged attack on West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday in Nandigram, the Union Minister said, “I do not know who attacked Mamata Banerjee or what the plan was. It is a matter of investigation. I do not think there is any politics involved in the incident. She was not attacked ever before. How can someone do it now?”

    Banerjee, who was on a two-day visit to Nandigram from where she filed her nomination on Wednesday, alleged that she was pushed by few unidentified people during her election campaigning.

    Banerjee sustained “severe bony injuries” on her left foot and ankle as well as bruises and injuries on her shoulder, forearm and neck, according to the report of her initial medical examination.

    The BJP has released the list of 60 candidates for the first two phases of the elections so far.

    Elections in West Bengal will be held in eight phases starting from March 27 with the final round of voting taking place on April 29. The counting of votes will take place on May 2.

    The state is likely to witness a triangular contest this time with TMC, Congress-Left alliance, and the BJP in the fray.

  • Bengal polls: JMM backs Mamata’s TMC, says won’t enter the fray

    Express News Service
    RANCHI: Shibu Soren’s Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) has decided to extend support to TMC for the upcoming Assembly polls “to stop communal forces” from coming to power in West Bengal.

    JMM working president and Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren announced that party chief Shibu Soren had given his consent to support TMC in West Bengal and therefore, JMM will not contest in any of the Assembly seats in the state.

    In the 2016 West Bengal Assembly polls, Jharkhand JMM had fielded its candidates in 23 seats in Purulia, Bankura, Jhargram, Birbhum, Darjeeling, and Alipurduar district, but could not register a victory on any of them.

    According to Soren, the decision came in the light of the request made by the TMC chief to support her party in West Bengal polls.

    ALSO READ | ‘Attack on Mamata part of deep-rooted conspiracy’: TMC delegation meets EC, demands high-level probe

    “Mamta Didi had called us over the phone and written a letter to us as well requesting our support in West Bengal Assembly polls. After a long discussion, it was decided to extend support to Mamta Didi and her party which is struggling hard to push back the communal forces,” said Soren.

    Looking at the current political scenario, the JMM will not field any of its candidates in West Bengal, he added.

    A few weeks ago, the JMM Central Committee had decided to contest West Bengal polls with all its might and started planning to expand its base in West Bengal as a part of its vision of ‘Vrihad Jharkhand’ (Greater Jharkhand).

  • From JNU to Jamuria: Aishe Ghosh to test her brand of politics in Bengal polls

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: Fielded by the CPI(M) from Jamuria Assembly seat, JNUSU president Aishe Ghosh said she will have Jawaharlal Nehru University in her heart and mind as she tests the politics she has practised so far in the coal fields of West Bengal.

    The first sitting JNUSU functionary to fight assembly polls, Ghosh, a latecomer into politics, blossomed as the president of the union at a time when student politics saw a resurgence after Left leader Kanhaiya Kumar came into media limelight following a sedition case.

    When asked what is it like to be catapult into national politics from JNU, she replied, “It is a big responsibility, but my politics will remain the same.”

    “The issues we fight for in JNU are an extension of what is happening across the country. Be it reservations, communalism, our fight for better education, employment, better living conditions. The issues are the same everywhere in this country. I will carry these issues that I fought for in JNU to the people of West Bengal,” Ghosh told PTI.

    Busy arranging her papers for travelling to Bengal for the election, Ghosh apologised for not being able to field calls while packing for a long and arduous battle that begins the day she arrives in Jamuria.

    A resident of Durgapur, where her parents still stay, Ghosh will be contesting from Jamuria, known for its illegal coal mining.

    But the 26-year-old seems to have a handle on her agenda.

    “The youth of Bengal is asking for jobs, better standards of living. Bengal itself has turned into an old age home where the youth are being forced to leave for better lives elsewhere.”

    “Even for higher education, youngsters are leaving the state. In the coal belt, where I come from, after the coronavirus crisis there is a huge issue of migrants who have returned and have no jobs,” she says.

    Ghosh passed her secondary and higher secondary exams in Durgapur, before joining Daulat Ram College in New Delhi from where she graduated in political science.

    Thereafter, she enrolled at the JNU for masters degree.

    After completing her masters, she enrolled for MPhil at School of International Relations in JNU.

    She is at present a second-year student of MPhil.

    She left Bengal in 2013 and her politics has remained centred around Delhi.

    When asked will she be treated as an outsider, Ghosh said, “My roots are still in the state. I was born and brought up here. I see no contradiction in this. I faced all the issues that are being faced by the people there. I know what the situation is there. My parents still live in Durgapur.”

    When asked how will she balance her roles as a politician in Bengal and a student at JNU in case she wins the Assembly polls, Aishe exuded confidence about being able to do so.

    “I am yet to think about it. While I believe education is extremely important and I will continue it, I can promise the people of Bengal that I will not run away like others have done in the past. If they show their faith in me by electing me, I will stand by them forever,” Ghosh said.

    Her conviction seems similar to her confidence barely a year back as she appeared at JNU campus addressing the media with injuries on her hand and head, and lashing out against the university administration and demanded the resignation of the vice-chancellor.

    “I had mixed emotions when the nominations were announced. Actually it is difficult to describe. When I told my parents about it, they were proud, happy and of course as parents may be a little apprehensive. However, there is a battle to be fought, it is not an individual fight, and I am all in.”

  • Two poll observers arrive in Bengal district to oversee preparedness

    By PTI
    NANDIGRAM: Two special observers for the West Bengal assembly elections arrived in Purba Medinipur district on Friday to oversee the preparedness in several districts, a senior official said.

    Special Observer Ajay Nayak and Special Police Observer Vivek Dubey are scheduled to hold meetings with district magistrates, SPs, polling officials of Purba Medinipur, Paschim Medinipur and Jhargram districts, he said.

    “Following the incident in which (CM) Mamata (Banerjee) was injured, we have to be extra cautious. Several VVIPs like the PM, home minister and others are slated to visit these districts for campaigning ahead of the polls, and we need to be vigilant and be on our feet,” the official told PTI.

    Banerjee suffered injuries on Wednesday after she was allegedly attacked by unknown miscreants while canvassing in Nandigram constituency.