West Bengal is going through a political turmoil with the unearthing of the West Bengal School Service Commission (WBSSC) scam, and the arrest of expelled cabinet minister and secretary general of the ruling Trinamool Congress, Partha Chatterjee.
According to the Enforcement Directorate (ED), the scam is worth more than Rs. 120 crore, with only Rs 50 crore seized till now.
The scam, growing corruption charges against several TMC leaders, and increasing violence across the state have directly affected the politics of Bengal chief minister (CM) and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee. In the past month, it has become clear that Banerjee is changing tack.
After her historic victory in the 2021 Bengal assembly elections, the party has been facing increased pressure from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the union government.
On the one hand, from the alleged post-poll violence to the gruesome Rampurhat massacre, the Calcutta High Court has ordered a CBI inquiry in a majority of the cases. In fact, it has come down heavily on the investigations of the West Bengal police, which reports to the CM herself.
On the other hand, central agencies are probing corruption charges against several heavyweight TMC leaders, including Abhishek Banerjee, party general secretary and Banerjee's nephew.
With Chatterjee’s arrest in the WBSSC scam, discontent among the people has grown.
These circumstances must have compelled Banerjee to change her stance on the BJP, and how she engages with other opposition parties.
The change in Banerjee became evident from her speech at the Martyrs' Day (Shahid Divas) rally held after a gap of two years (due to Covid).
Every July 21st Banerjee holds a huge rally to commemorate the deaths of 13 people killed in police firing during a demonstration by the West Bengal Youth Congress in 1993, then led by her.
In the past, the event has been a bullhorn in her tirade against the BJP.
This time, however, she did not take on the BJP along similar lines. She confined her speech to issues with the GST and the unlawful use of central agencies against opposition parties.
Earlier, Banerjee would position herself as the key crusader against the BJP. This year, even as people expected her to announce a roadmap for conquering Delhi, she simply said that the BJP will not get a majority in the 2024 elections, and that the opposition parties will come together to form the government.
The most striking change in Banerjee’s political position was visible on the evening of July 21st, a day before Chatterjee’s arrest. The TMC announced that it will abstain from the vice-presidential polls as Congress had not spoken to Banerjee before deciding on Margaret Alva’s candidature.
Given that Jagdeep Dhankar, the former governor of Bengal, was the NDA candidate, her decision not only seemed odd, but also marked a significant shift in her politics.
The TMC and Dhankar would clash openly, bitterly and regularly when was in office. Despite being a fierce opponent of Dhankar, Banerjee chose to abstain, sending a clear message of shifting political sands.
Banerjee’s decision to distance herself from other opposition parties became clearer during her visit to Delhi last week. Every time she visits Delhi, she meets with opposition leaders.
This time, though, Banerjee neither attended any meeting of opposition leaders, nor visited any leader individually. Also, Banerjee would always invite journalists for a chat, and then hold an impromptu press conference during such visits. She did no such thing this time. However, she met prime minister Modi and attended the NITI Ayog meet, where all the CMs were present.
Her plan to expand the TMC’s presence to other states has also undergone a substantial alteration.
After the victory in the 2021 assembly polls, Banerjee launched a plan to expand the TMC’s presence to other states. TMC entered the fray in the Goa assembly elections and fought the Tripura local body polls as well. But it failed miserably in both states.
Banerjee and her party have fallen silent about the expansion. Abhishek was leading the expansion project, but after Chatterjee's arrest, he was tasked with managing the organisation in Bengal.
The TMC now has a reshuffled cabinet, comprising members close to Abhishek, the second most important person in the party after Banerjee.
Some political parties have recalibrated their engagement with the BJP. Some, ranging from the YSR Congress to the Aam Aadmi Party, have found novel ways to oppose the BJP by skirting contentious issues such as Hindutva.
Whether Mamata Banerjee is doing an about-face vis-a-vis the BJP, or only minor adjustments, will be known in days to come.
Sayantan Ghosh is a Kolkata-based journalist. Twitter: @sayantan_gh. Views are personal, and do not represent the stand of this publication.
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