On Bengal’s political platter: Central agencies, bypoll, DA protests and ARI

The political parties in West Bengal are busy with their outreach campaigns eyeing rural polls, and now there are newer issues on the state’s political turf.

A prominent state Trinamool leader, Anubrata Mondal, was taken to the state capital on Tuesday evening by ED officials in connection with an ongoing investigation concerning cattle smuggling.

In the political domain, the new development has given the state's Opposition another opportunity to raise fingers at the ruling party. Trinamool chief Mamata Banerjee, on March 2, had made an observation in a political context, citing upcoming elections.

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“They are taking Keshto (Anubrata Mondal) to Delhi? It’s because of panchayat elections. They think they can arrest people before elections to capture votes, that won’t happen,” a Trinamool party release quoted her as saying.

Trinamool leader Firhad Hakim, on Tuesday, said that it’s not the ‘agency raj’ but the people who will have the last word. The role of central agencies was also brought up by the Trinamool, and other eight parties in a joint letter written to PM Narendra Modi.

A bypoll to a legislative assembly constituency – Sagardighi – saw Trinamool losing the seat after having won the same in three consecutive elections. To Banerjee, this happened due to an ‘immoral alliance’, the Left backed Congress candidate, having received a ‘transfer’ of BJP’s votes.

In just two years, the Trinamool’s vote percentage is down from 50.95 per cent to 34.94 per cent. Following this development, Banerjee asserted that Trinamool’s ‘alliance’ for 2024 (elections) is ‘with the people’ – Trinamool versus the rest, as far as Bengal is concerned. The Trinamool’s political opponents saw this development as a swing in voters’ mood, and expect that the upcoming rural polls may also throw up surprises.

While the by-election is definitely not reflecting the voters across the state, still the Trinamool has asked a few senior party leaders to explore what actually happened in the constituency, which has most voters from the minority community.

The current politics in Bengal also has the issue of a section of state government employees protesting and demanding a hike in dearness allowance. The chief minister, however, has clarified that what’s being offered is all that the state can offer. The Opposition parties, however, have been vocal about the employees’ demands.

The acute respiratory infection (ARI) cases have also been reported in the state. On Monday, Banerjee addressing members in the state legislative assembly said that 19 children have died due to the infection. Thirteen of those who died, however, had co-morbidities. The state announced measures, and even the leaves of health officials were cancelled. The Opposition, however, pointed at the flaws in the state’s health system.