by abhay mokashi
The post-election violence in West Bengal has to be condemned in the strongest words. It is shocking and painful to see people go on a rampage killing each other and women being attacked. There are reports that women have also been raped.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the All-India Trinamool Congress (TMC) have lost their party supporters in the violence. Both the parties have charged each other with the violence, which is not surprising, with the BJP being more vocal.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has to ensure that peace is restored all over the state and that the culprits are brought to justice, whichever party they may belong to. She has to ensure that the members of her party should not be spared, if they are found to be involved in the violence.
Her leadership and administrative skills are being put to test. Already the BJP, the West Bengal Governor and the large section of the media have questioned her administrative abilities in the light of the violence. The same media and the BJP leadership failed to question Union Home Minister Amit Shah, during the violence in Delhi, after BJP’s electoral victory.
The Chief Minister has to ensure that the violence does not take a communal colour in a state, where Hindus and Muslims have shown exceptional fraternal relationship, even after repeated attempts to fan communal passions.
Banerjee should also find out why the local police failed to control the violence when it erupted.
BJP National President J P Nadda, visited West Bengal to meet the families of the BJP activists who have been killed and he has squarely placed the blame of the violence on the TMC. No party is going to own up to the violence.
Only a fair and impartial probe can reveal who is responsible for this violence. But till that happens, several points need to be looked into.
It is difficult to fathom, why a party which has come to power with such a thumping majority, should indulge in violence. Political history of the country shows that generally, such violence is unleashed by the defeated party, not the one which is elected to power, as the party elected to power would not like to lose its credibility. A political party, especially one which has staked its all in terms of money power, leaders and reputation, cannot digest defeat.
In case of West Bengal, soon after the poll results were out, a BJP star candidate, Babul Supriyo, posted on his Facebook, “Neither will I congratulate Mamata Banerjee for her win in Bengal nor do I wish to say that I ‘respect’ the people’s verdict, because I sincerely think that people of Bengal made a Historic mistake by not giving BJP a change & by election this Corrupt, Incapable, Dishonest Government & a Cruel Lady back to power!! Yes, as a Law-Abiding citizen, I shall ‘obey’ the decision taken by the people in a democratic country. That’s it!! Nothing more—Nothing less!!” (sic)
The message is clear that he does not accept the TMC victory, since the BJP has not disassociated itself from this post, it could mean that the party too does not accept the people’s verdict.
It has to be noted that there was similar violence in Delhi, after the Aam Aadmi Part (AAP) was elected to power, with BJP facing a shocking defeat. The violence continued for a few days, though the police is under the Union Government.
How come there is violence to two different states, when the BJP is defeated? The party that wins has achieved its goal and there is no reason to indulge in violence; the defeated would generally indulge in violence.
It is equally surprising that women have been attacked in the current phase of violence in West Bengal. During the campaign, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and other BJP leaders, had been promising safety of women in West Bengal if BJP is elected to power. Bengalis have been known to respect women, with every lady being addressed as Didi. A large number of independent channels had interviewed women in West Bengal, across socio-economic sections. All the women, from different parts of West Bengal, stated in these interviews that they felt safe in West Bengal while moving around, sometimes alone, even at 2 am and 3 am. They also mentioned that Adityanath must first ensure safety and security of women in his state, before speaking about their safety in West Bengal. “We are safe under Didi’s (Mamata Banerjee’s) rule,” almost all of them said.
Finally, Banerjee has to be ready for more challenges during her rule, as she can expect more trouble, since she has to be projected as a ‘cruel, vamp’ who is not fit to rule. If she is not maligned, she will continue to be a threat to the BJP and primarily to Modi.