Blotched by violence, vicious private assaults and jingoistic fulminations, polling for probably the most gruelling and long-drawn West Bengal meeting elections concluded on Thursday with an estimated round 80 per cent of over 84.77 lakh voters exercising their franchise. Arguably essentially the most bitterly fought in a very long time, the polls acquired mired in controversy the very day the Election Commission introduced an 8-phase election schedule for the politically risky state on February 26, drawing accusation from the ruling TMC that it was geared toward serving to the BJP.
Barring Assam, the place the train was held in three levels on March 27, April 1 and 6, votes have been solid in Tamil Nadu, Kerala and the Union Territory of Puducherry in a single part on April 6. In Bengal, regardless of the elections dragging on for over a month-from March 27 to April 29-voter enthusiasm hardly confirmed any signal of waning, with the turnout ranging between 76.90 per cent within the seventh part, held amid a raging COVID-19 pandemic, and 86.11 per cent within the second part, when the contagion appeared like ebbing away.
The December 10, 2020 incident in Diamond Harbour close to Kolkata, when BJP president J P Nadda’s convoy got here underneath assault by alleged TMC supporters, was portentous of how grimly fought will the elections be slightly over three months later. As brickbats rained like hailstones, smashing windscreens of autos and injuring many leaders, together with BJP’s Bengal minder Kailash Vijayvargiya, ominous clouds had began gathering over the state’s political panorama a lot earlier than the elections really acquired underway.
Every few days since, political employees and floor degree leaders of the BJP and TMC have been reported injured or killed in clashes, or their our bodies present in fields and barns and hanging from timber. Mamata Banerjee, arguably preventing the hardest ballot of her enviable political profession towards the battle-hardened election military of the BJP led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah, conjured up the weapon of Bengali subnationalism, one thing by no means seen earlier than in West Bengal politics, to mount a counteroffensive.
The BJP responded to her “jingoistic” tactical manoeuvre of beginning the insider-outsider debate by invoking Syama Prasad Mookerjee, the founding father of Jana Sangh, the forerunner of the saffron get together, calling itself a celebration which had its roots in Bengal. Whether the weapon of Bengali subnationalism did neutralise the BJP’s aggressive Hindutva marketing campaign, throughout which chants of “Jai Shri Ram” have been heard extra as a battle cry than a non secular pitch at election rallies, solely time will inform.
However, the saffron get together’s combative Hindutva posturing introduced out the hidden Hindu in Banerjee, typically accused by the BJP of minority appeasement. She started reminding individuals attending her rallies of her being a Brahmin, and reciting ‘Chandi Path’, an ode to Goddess Durga, alongside verses of Quran. However, uncertain whether or not her tender Hindutva will lower ice with hardline Hindu voters, Banerjee, at a rally in Hooghly district, appealed to Muslims not to enable their votes to get divided, drawing flak from the Election Commission, which was additionally upset along with her remarks that central forces on election responsibility have been “helping the BJP under instructions from Home Minister Amit Shah”.
The EC stopped Banerjee from campaigning for 24 hours for her “highly insinuating and provocative remarks laden with serious potential of the breakdown of law and order” and one which had “communal overtones”. The typically rambunctious Bengal chief staged a sit-in following the order. “Bhaipo” (nephew) and “tolabaji” (extortion) turned catchwords within the BJP’s marketing campaign lexicon to assault Mamata Banerjee, whose nephew and Diamond Harbour MP Abhishek the BJP accused of operating syndicates which took bribes “even for issuing death certificates”.
Banerjee shot again with vengeance. Calling Home Minister Amit Shah a “demon”, the chief minister took a swipe at Modi over his beard, saying, “Industrial growth has stopped and only Modi’s beard is growing”. “Sometimes he calls himself Swami Vivekananda and sometimes renames stadiums after his own name. Something is wrong with his brain. It seems a screw is loose,” mentioned informed a rally as electoral discourse plumbed new depths.
As violent clashes continued to rattle the state with alarming frequency widening political and societal chasm, got here the fourth part of polling on April 10 when 5 individuals have been killed at Sitalkuchi in Cooch Behar district, together with 4 in firing by CISF personnel in “self defence” after they allegedly got here underneath assault by a mob. Banerjee claimed the 4 belonging to the minority neighborhood have been TMC supporters who have been killed in a “genocide” whereas standing in queue to vote.
Several BJP leaders, together with its state chief Dilip Ghosh made patently intemperate remarks, inviting notices from the election watchdog. “Where did so many naughty boys come from? There can be more Sitalkuchi-like incidents if naughty boys like the ones who received bullets try to take law into their hands,” Ghosh had mentioned after the incident.
The EC, whereas issuing a discover to Ghosh, mentioned his remarks have been “provocative”, might incite “emotions” and “lead to a breakdown of law and order thereby adversely affecting the election process”. Rahul Sinha, one other senior BJP chief, stirred the pot additional together with his remarks that “eight not four people should have been shot” within the incident, frightening the ballot panel to bar him from campaigning for 48 hours. Sinha is a former nationwide secretary of the BJP.
As the election course of meandeared unhurriedly by way of its course, the COVID-19 scourge that appeared to have been tamed within the preliminary levels started rearing its ugly head. As specialists sounded an alarm whereas rival contenders for energy held huge rallies the place COVID-19 norms have been flouted with impunity, the TMC knocked on the doorways of the Election Commission for clubbing collectively the final three phases of polling however its request was turned down.
Various excessive courts got here down exhausting on the Centre and state governments over spurting COVID instances, and the Madras High Court chastised the Election Commission, holding it “singularly” accountable for its unfold and calling the ballot panel “the most irresponsible institution”. The TMC, which repeatedly criticised the election panel over the protracted state polls, protested indignantly, saying, “The Centre and the EC have the blood of COVID-19 patients on their hands as they refused to consider the serious threat to the health of the people and stuck to their agenda.” On May 2, when the votes are counted, there might be no victory lap for the winner of the rancour-filled electoral battle however yet one more daunting struggle towards an even bigger, invisible enemy-the coronavirus.
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