West Bengal Change
– N K Tripathi
Many political reactions and analyses have already come in abundance in Media. Therefore, I have nothing to add. But I would like to say as someone who had been going to West Bengal for more than a decade and has extensively travelled north-south from the Himalayas to Sundarbans and east west from the river Ichamati to Jhargram. I have seen the life from close quarters in the vast interiors of West Bengal and I am tempted to look for future.
Unlike other eastern states, West Bengal is not a poor state. But while it was front-runner at the time of the independence, it is now a middle income state, GDP wise. I feel Bengali people are peace-loving and very cultured in all respects. Calcutta is the safest Metro in India. However, the politics in Bengal was vicious and violent, even before the CPM came 49 years back. CPM fine tuned its cadre to be violent for political gain. in return to the services rendered by the political workers, they were allowed to extort money in their own petty ways in the cities and the villages. When Mamta came to power in 2011, a large number of CPM workers ( goons) joined TMC fold. From 2016 onward the remaining CPM workers switched to BJP. It gave some muscles to the BJP in the hinterland. BJP was still weaker, and in Panchayat elections in 2018 its many candidates were beaten badly in the villages and were not allowed to file nominations.
Political violence was rampant and followed in 2021 Vidhan Sabha elections with 71 cruel deaths. In every other respect, except political, West Bengal is peaceful land.
Modi in his victory speech at the BJP headquarters sent various messages to the local to the International audience. He said one remarkable thing for West Bengal politics that there wouldn’t be any revenge but only work for development. Politics has marred the progress of Bengal. For example, the construction of national highways, fencing at the border and Metro in Calcutta and various schemes in rural areas are deliberately left incomplete. If the state BJP takes Modi seriously, there can be a sea change in West Bengal. Political violence may be relegated to the history as it was done in UP and Bihar. I hope and wish that the fundamental mindset of Bengal political leaders and probably the government machinery will change for the better. Industries and Calcutta and Haldia ports may become vibrant. People of Bengal are yearning to welcome such a change.
