VIOLENCE and terrorisation of an unprecedented scale marked the municipal polls in West Bengal, tearing apart the semblance of rule of law. Hundreds of polling booths in Kolkata on April 18 and in 91 other municipalities on April 25 were captured by armed gangs of the Trinamool Congress, in a planned manner and with full help from the state administration. The mockery of democracy resulted in denying tens of thousands of people their voting rights.

The farce thus enacted has been proved by the results it had actually produced.

Kolkata witnessed unprecedented reign of violence and terror on the polling day. From the early morning, news channels began to telecast booth capturing and large scale attacks which culminated in hundreds of booths captured when the polling ended. The ruling party brought in criminals from other districts also. The TMC specifically targeted areas where Left Front had won in 2010 elections or where they had a lead in Lok Sabha elections. In northern and north-east Kolkata, majority of booths suffered TMC attacks and by noon there were practically no genuine voters near the booths. Opposition leader of Kolkata Corporation Rupa Bagchi and several other leaders were chased away from polling booths. Polling agents of Left parties were not allowed to stay within booths. The result showed that TMC won these wards with sky-rocketing margins, even in traditional Left strongholds of Beleghata and Maniktola.  In many wards, the votes of opposition parties have come down below 15 per cent!  The victory margins of TMC candidates have crossed 15 thousand and more. In some booths more than 100 per cent votes were cast without any intervention from state election authorities.

In central areas of the city, TMC gangs forced the slum dwellers and minority people to stay inside their homes and with the help of police they had run over the booths. In this area, the TMC has won almost all wards. In a ward, the son of a state minister won by a margin of 30 thousand, embarrassing the ruling party leaders too. Jadavpur, with a long legacy of Left movement, was another area of their target. There were fierce attacks and strong resistance in the entire area. Countless number of people were injured in the attacks. TMC won 11 wards out of 14 in this area. TMC ‘won’ in 114 wards out of 144, while LF won in 15, BJP in 7, Congress in 6.

It is quite another phenomena that the TMC suffered a humiliating defeat in the ward where Mamata Banerjee herself is a resident.

NORTH 24 PARGANAS

Bullets, bombs and booth capture were the three major means used to ensure almost a complete halt to the election process in 23 municipal areas in this district. In most of the places, the general voters were prevented to exercise their mandate. Five people suffered bullet injuries at Kamarhati, Titagarh, Bhaatpara, North Dumdum and Madhyamgram.

At Bhatpara a voter named Satrughna Singh suffered bullet injury in ward no. 14. A two year old girl got injured in a bomb blast at Bhatpara. The vehicle of the presiding officer was attacked by them. At least thirty wards were completely under the command of the ruling party miscreants, led by the TMC MLA. 

Rafikul Ali along with three other children suffered blast impact at Madhyamgram in ward no. 1. TMC hoodlums detained Party district committee member Ahmed Khan in a polling booth and tried to kill him. False votes, booth capture claimed almost ten wards in this municipal area where regular polling was completely barred. Nexus between police administration, ruling party cadres and anti-socials claimed at least 50 per cent of the poll booths in Barasat municipal area of which six wards were worst affected.

In North Dumdum municipal area in ward no. 2, the TMC anti-socials targeted and fired bullets at Party leader Gobinda Pal early in the morning on the poll day. Few booths of ward no. 11 and 33 got secured by the anti-socials to cast false vote in favour of the ruling party from early in the morning. Left candidate of ward no. 30 got beaten up badly by the ruling party goons. After 1 pm all the booths got captured by the anti-socials of the TMC and people including Left activists got beaten up in large numbers. TMC kidnapped LF candidate and put him away for hours.

At Khardah Municipal area, at least in six wards, all polling booths got captured and false votes were cast in almost eight to ten wards.

At least nineteen wards of Kamarhati municipality experienced massive rigging from early in the morning on the poll day. Tamal Dey, former chairman of the municipality and the candidate of ward no. 24 got brutally beaten up by the TMC forces along with the candidates of ward no 7 and 18, Md Mortaza and Swapan Sarkar. Women candidates Maya Dasgupta, Shyamali Das, Snigdha Moitra and Koyel Chakraborty of ward no. 14, 30, 29 and 23 respectively got manhandled by TMC hoodlums. Polling agents of the Party were forced to leave the polling booths.

All twenty four wards of Kanchrapara municipal area witnessed massive rigging and got terrorised by ruling party backed hooligans.

The experience of South Dumdum municipal election is also the same. The TMC agents captured at least twelve wards and cast false votes by stopping common voters. At Naihati municipality all the wards except five wards were terrorised, captured and rigged.

Fifteen wards of the Garulia municipal area witnessed massive attacks, intimidation and rigging. Anti-socials of the ruling party fired bullets targeting Forward Block candidate Nimai Biswas and the police administration arrested him giving the anti-socials a freeway.

Women candidates of Left Front of ward 1, 19 and 13 got assaulted by the TMC goons at New Barrackpore municipal election. The anti-socials were the sole moderators of election at least in eleven wards. Baranagar and North Barakpore municipal areas were not different in witnessing terror and rigged election procedure.

Ward nos 1 and 13 of Bongaon municipality witnessed TMC candidates capturing booths and casting false mandates in their favour. Among the twenty one wards, election in at least 11 wards were rigged, EVMs were destroyed. Police administration like at all other places observed inaction if not helping the miscreants. Gobardanga municipal area experienced election becoming hunting ground for bike gangs and miscreants.

At Basirhat municipality, the police administration actively took part in ensuring free passage for the anti-socials and arrested twenty innocent people. Guns and bombs were used to ensure election of a favorable kind to the ruling party.

In North 24 Parganas, TMC won all of 23 municipalities. The score sheet of wards is testimony to the intensity of rigging. In Kanchrapara, TMC won 22, Left Front (LF) 0; in Halisahar TMC won 21, LF 0; in Naihati TMC 31, LF 0; in Bhatpara TMC 33, LF1; in North Barackpore TMC 21, LF 1; In Garulia TMC 17, LF 1; in Dum Dum TMC 21, LF 1; in Baranagar TMC 32, LF 2; in New Barackpore TMC won 17, LF 1. Courageous resistance brought 8 wards for LF in North Dum Dum, 5 in Kamarhati. In the entire stretch from Baranagar to Kanchrapara, TMC armed gangs attacked countless booths, LF agents were chased away and there was unhindered use of guns and bombs. Except in pockets where people could steadfastly resist, EVM machines were in possession of ruling party’s hooligans. This devastating storm trooping was extended upto Kalyani in Nadia district where TMC did not allow any opposition to gain any seat. They won 21-0 there. In another bordering area, Haringhata the result was 19-0 in favour of the TMC. In Gayeshpur, the next adjoining municipality, LF candidates were forced to withdraw their nominations, candidates were kidnapped and large scale attack was organised before the elections. TMC won all 18 seats there.

HOOGHLY

Hooghly was another district where the ruling party went for a rampage. In Arambagh and Tarakeswar, they forced opposition candidates to withdraw. As a result, in Arambagh the TMC won 19-0, in Tarakeswar 15-0. In the industrial belt of Hooghly, there were continuous attacks during electioneering. And, on the day of elections bike-borne armed gangs roamed freely to capture booths one after another. The results manifested the widespread rigging. In Banshberia, TMC won 17, LF 2; in Rishra TMC won 19, LF 2, in Champdani TMC won 13, LF 1. In some of these municipalities, independent candidates won sporadically. There was strong resistance and people’s mobilisation in Dankuni and Bhadreswar. In Dankuni, TMC could win 11 out of 21, and in Bhadreswar they failed to win majority of wards.

OTHER DISTRICTS

In South 24 Parganas, booth capturing and false voting was the feature of election in ward no 1, 15, 28, 29, 30 and 35 of Rajpur-Sonarpur municipal area. From 11 am, the TMC hooligans started their ‘action’ to ‘secure’ whatever their supremo had told them to. Before 1 pm 60 per cent votes were cast in Rajpur-Sonarpur, Mahestala and Budge Budge municipal elections. Instances of beating Left polling agents and candidates, intimidation were among the common experiences in all the areas. In South Dinajpur, police and Trinamool cadres jointly captured booths and cast false votes starting from early in the morning in Gangarampur municipality.  CPI(M) district committee secretary and former minister Narayan Biswas was among the people who got attacked by the TMC anti-socials. Left candidates and agents were beaten up and forcefully evicted from the polling booths.

Images of Katwa in Burdwan, however, have stunned the nation. Gun trotting criminals freely roamed in this town and incessant firings and hurling bombs continued throughout the day. State minister Swapan Debnath was caught on camera, instructing criminals from the police station itself. At Kalna municipality election was rigged by the order of the same person along with the local MLA. Left polling agents were forcefully evicted out of the polling stations.

RESISTANCE

People’s resistance was the other side of the story. Thousands defied ruling party’s violence and stood in the long queue in front of polling booths. In many instances, they returned even after they were chased away. In many parts of North 24 Parganas, Hooghly, Bankura, Burdwan, Murshidabad, West Midnapore, local residents led by Left activists squarely faced the anti-socials and guarded their booths. Countless suffered injuries, blood was shed but courageous battles were fought on streets.

LEFT VICTORY

IN SILIGURI

The people of Siliguri Corporation, the largest town after Kolkata, gave a strong rebuff to TMC and particularly to the chief minister. Mamata Banerjee was said to have directed her party leaders to ‘win at any cost’. But, waves of rallies in the town warned the ruling party of any misadventure and the elections were mostly peaceful. Left Front won 23 wards out of total 47 and an independent extended his support to the LF, thus paving the way for board formation. TMC got 17 seats, while Congress won in 4 and BJP in 2 wards. Urban development minister in the Left Front government, Ashok Bhattacharya contested polls and handsomely won. This is an important win for the LF as they obtained this thriving centre of northern Bengal after five years of chaos and mismanagement.

In fact, in northern Bengal, wherever the polling was relatively free, the Left Front has earned important gains. In Dinhata in Coochbehar district, LF retained with 13-3 majority. In Coochbehar town, LF was defeated 8-10. LF retained Jangipur and Jiaganj-Azimganj in Murshidabad district. LF won back Dainhat in Burdwan district.

GENERAL STRIKE

Left Front has called for a general strike and hartal on April 30, protesting the massive rigging in municipal elections in the state. The 12-hour strike call came after the wholesale booth capturing, violent attacks on voters and opposition activists with the help from police and state administration took place. Left Front has termed this election as a ‘farce’. For the first time in four years of the TMC rule in West Bengal, the Left Front has called for a total strike in the state. CPI(M) state secretary Suryakanta Misra termed this strike action as a step forward to intensify the resistance that has already started.

Left Front chairman Biman Basu and CPI(M) state secretary Suryakanta Misra have called upon all democratic-minded people to register their protest against this all-out assault on democracy. SUCI (C), CPI (ML-Liberation) and other Left parties have also extended support to the strike call.

Simultaneously, central trade unions have called for a general strike too on April 30. On that day all India strike of the transport workers is scheduled. Along with that, almost all central trade unions in Bengal have called for a general strike against the attack on democratic rights of the workers and people. Apart from the CITU, AITUC, TUCC, UTUC, others like INTUC and HMS have issued joint call for the general strike. Trade unions have given the call for a 24 hour strike. Mass organisations like AIKS, AIDWA, DYFI, SFI and others have joined in.

CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury visited injured Left activists in Kolkata hospitals on April 26. Yechury told in press conference that peoples’ resistance is the only way to restore democracy in the state as constitutional scheme of things have virtually collapsed there.