Kolkata: It is ‘jungle raj’ in West Bengal where Trinamool Congress (TMC) chief Mamata Banerjee rules with supreme power and impunity. Her minions have spread violence and threats to subdue any voice or vote against TMC and its chief. They resort to murder, rape, kidnapping, torture, and extortion on opposition party workers.
No wonder that the Election Commission special observer Ajay V. Nayak has said that the situation in West Bengal is similar to the lawlessness that existed in Bihar 15 years ago.
Fifteen years ago, Lalu Prasad Yadav led Bihar through the dark days of complete chaos where law and justice was a distant dream. People were murdered, women raped, families destroyed under the misrule of Lalu Prasad.
Nayak said that the people have lost their faith in police force of West Bengal and this is the reason why there is a demand for Central forces at every polling booth.
Ajay Nayak is the former Bihar Chief Election Officer and is now asked to oversee the last phases of election in West Bengal. The parallel between West Bengal and Bihar of fifteen years ago might be drawn by his extensive experience.
Nayak added that the situation in Bihar has improved a lot since the dark ages of lawlessness fifteen years ago. He asked why this is not happening in the case of West Bengal.
In the first phase of West Bengal election there were multiple reports of booth capturing, smashing of EVMs, and intimidation of voters.
The election observer said, “In the third phase on April 23, 324 companies of central forces would be deployed to cover more than 92% of the polling booths in five Lok Sabha constituencies.”
Earlier, polling officials in Cooch Behar had announced that they would not discharge their duties if central forces are not deployed for their protection. In a protest march the officials said that they had clear indication of the ground realities and were worried of their personal safety.
Mamata Banerjee has been at the helm of West Bengal since 2011 after dethroning the equally repressive communist regime. The TMC workers have been aggressively pursuing their former communist rivals and killing them in huge numbers.
With the rise of BJP in West Bengal, the TMC have trained their guns on the nationalist party. Many BJP workers have lost their lives in fight against the dictatorial rule of Mamata Banerjee and her TMC.
