Bengal BJP presents its ‘Charge-sheet’ against the Mamata government on its 2nd anniversary

By: Krishanu Mitra

The West Bengal BJP presented its ‘Chargesheet’ against the state government on its 2nd anniversary. Briefing the members of the print & electronic media over it at the party’s State Headquarters on 22/5/13 State President Sri Rahul Sinha accused the state government of failing the people’s mandate on several fronts. Sri Sinha charged the ruling TMC government of gross corruption, failing to maintain law & order, mis-governance, failing to utilize central funds on development schemes and being vindictive against opposition parties & its carders very much in line with the style of the erstwhile CPM government.

On corruption the BJP highlighted the ‘Trident’ & the ‘Chitfund’ scams. Rahul Sinha claimed that barring the BJP all other political parties of all colours and shades are privy to the loot of the Chit-fund companies and their corrupt practices. He expressed surprise at the reluctance of the state to hand over the investigations to the CBI. He also reminded all that it was the BJP and the BJP alone that has been warning the government of this impending loot being orchestrated in Bengal in the name of these chitfunds. Even last year while presenting the chargesheet on the 1st anniversary of the TMC government the BJP drew the attention of all concerned towards these Chitfund loot and even mentioning the ‘Saradha Group’ in particular.

Earlier a committee was appointed under the chairmanship of ex-State President and National Executive member Prof. Tathagata Roy to prepare this ‘Chargesheet’.

The nine point question that the BJP posed to Mamata are:

1. Using the police and the administration in a partisan manner to help the ruling party and victimize the opposition activists very much in line with the erstwhile left government.
2. In-spite of declaring its intent to announce a ‘Industrial policy’ nothing has come so far.
3. ‘Bengal Leads’ investors’ meet has been a huge failure and only ended up draining the constrained state coffers further.
4. No concrete step has been initiated for fighting unemployment.
5. Nakedly perusing minority appeasement.
6. The state government being hand-in-gloves with the ‘Chit-fund’ companies.
7. Attempting to shield the culprits of the ‘Chit-fund’ scam.
8. The fact that scamster Sudipta Sen purchased the CM’s painting (CM being a amateur painter) for 1.86 crore, proves that its an attempt to buy over the CM.
9. The CM’s claim that she knew nothing of the ‘Chit-fund’ mess before April 15 is a fallacy.

Though like a responsible opposition and in truly statesman like Sri Rahul Sinha complimented the state government for restoring peace to the maoist affected ‘Jangalmahal’ and partially solving the ‘Darjeeling’ embargo.

BJP Memorandum to Hon'ble Governor

Dated 7th May, 2013

Shri M. K. Narayanan
Hon’ble Governor of West Bengal
Raj Bhawan
Kolkata – 700 062

Respected Sir,

You must be aware of the greatest financial scandal which has rocked West Bengal and other adjacent states and where the names of prominent leaders and ministers of ruling party along with leaders & ex-Ministers of CPI (M) and a few Congress leaders have come up. The State Government has alreadily formed an Enquiry Commission headed by ex-Justice Shyamal Kumar Sen, which had started taking stock of the situation ( under the Commission of Inquiry Act, 1952). As preliminary enquiry shows that the depository amount have been siphoned to other states and even to other nations, hence SIT cannot be competent enough to enquire. Hence CBI is the only competent authority to investigate this case properly. We have met Justice Shyamal Kumar Sen at his Commission on 30th April, 2013 and during discussions he also pledged his inability to investigate into such dimension. CBI has also pledged to investigate through their affidavit in Hon’ble Kolkata High Court.

Further more, State Governments of Assam, Bihar, Tripura, who are also affected through this scam has asked for CBI enquiry, then why our Hon’ble Chief Minister, who, when in the opposition bench, often have demanded for CBI, is now not interested in CBI enquiry? Is it because she wishes to hide the truth? Whatever may be the reason, we also have reservations in CBI functioning, but to solve this case and to confiscate the entire empire of Saradha and to pay the investor back from confiscation and auctioneering their properties, CBI is the only solution. Moreover, it is being said that at least Rs.35,000 crores have been invested in Saradha group by poor and lower middle class category and our Chief Minister is trying to raise Rs.150 crore from Tobacco Tax to provide them relief. Is it really a mockery?

In the Parliament 73 illegal chit fund companies were mentioned. But as many as 2,000 big or small illegal money laundering funds are presently in operation in West Bengal. It may also be mentioned that our state is industry-barren and it has a load of more than 1 crore jobless youths. It may be worthwhile to mention that millions of people of varied educational background work in those illegal money laundering funds either as agent or as staff. Hence if we close all money laundering funds without checking their system of work, then a further flood of jobless people would detoriate our law and order situation and a number of people might commit suicide, which has alreadily started. Hence a system should be generated to protect the money of poor and lower middle class people along with protection of thousands of people earning their bread and butter from these companies.

It may also be noted that the State Government is yet to file any case against Saradha or any such illegal money laundering Companies and our Chief Minister is openly saying that these companies are registered under Companies Act and hence the State Government cannot take any action unless a case is registered. We may kindly inform you that AMRI is a registered company and during the AMRI Dhakuria inferno, this Chief Minister has ordered arrests of all the directors of AMRI without any case registration. We, through you, demand immediate arrest of all the Directors and CEOs of Saradha and confiscation of all their properties. The sooner it is done, the better is the chance of recovery.

Hence, it should be worthwhile to use SEBI as a watchdog and to critically investigate the performance of each money laundering fund and to take necessary actions against the law breakers. The reason being, for example, if all the depositors of any nationalized Bank go to collect their deposit in a single day, the Bank will collapse. Similarly, if all the depositors demand their money from any such company, the company directors have no other way but to flee and the investors money will never be recovered.

So it should be the duty of the SEBI and other central Financial agencies along with the State Government to be a watchdog and allow them to work legally so that the depositors can get their money back in right time. We may, at the same time, like to brief you that the same type of monetary scandal happened between 1980 & 2003, i.e. during Left Front regime, through Sanchaita, Sanchayani, Favourite, Overland, all the cases have simply been disappeared without any arrest, without any payment to the investors.

We once again request you to immediately press this government for CBI enquiry.

Regards,
Sincerely yours,

Rahul Sinha, (State President)
Prabhakar Tewari, Dr. Subhas Sarkar, Badsha Alam (Vice Presidents)
Rabin Chatterjee, Ashim Sarkar (General Secretaries)
Ritesh Tewari, Kamal Beriwal (Secretaries)

End of A Nightmare - Whither BJP?

By Tathagata Roy
At the end of long 34 years, Left Rule in West Bengal has finally ended. And the person who brought it about, almost singly, is a frail little lady called Mamata Banerjee. The people are agog, the media is bursting with compliments and businessmen are falling over one another to be photographed with her. As a Leftism-hater (not just a Left Front hater like Mamata) I am overwhelmed. I did not think I’d live to see this day. Long live the frail lady for what she has achieved.

Having said that, I have also to say that I’m far from happy. I am a BJP activist, and my party drew a blank. Why? A lot of people want to know. Even I wan to know. Hence this blog.

First let’s take a look at how badly the BJP has done. Detailed, constituency-wise results can be obtained from eciresults.nic.in, and they are not encouraging. The BJP, as is well known, has failed to get a single seat, though at different times they were leading at Madarihat, Jorasanko and Baharampur. Their vote share has also come down to four-something per cent, down from the usual 5-6%. rather a dismal picture.

However, there is a different way of looking at it, and we’ll see if that can give us a better or brighter picture of things. Take a look at the table above.

Now we know (whether our detractors believe us or not is not relevant) why we had fielded candidates practically in all 294 seats. We wanted our workers and karyakartas (functionaries) to wake up, have some work to do, and bring the name of the party to the forefront to the extent possible. We never expected to do well (forget winning or keeping our deposits) in any of these, and that is why we spent only a very modest amount, much, much less than what the Election Commission allows, on most of these constituencies. Our concentration was on some 15 seats, to which brought our central readers, did a high-pressure campaign and worked really hard. These seats are marked with an asterisk in the table. In addition to these there was a seat called Hingalgunj where we did not do too well, got below 10,000 votes.

What does all this indicate? To explain, I must first state the logic behind BJP’s fighting nearly all seats in the state. This logic I know as a BJP insider, but it is not difficult for an astute political watcher to figure all this out. There were principally four objectives, and I state our performance against each one of them:

First, we wanted to stir up whatever organization we have in every constituency. We also wanted the staunch supporters of BJP to have a candidate that they could vote for. This has, of course happened, but it was anyway bound to happen.

Secondly, we wanted the vote percentage of BJP to increase. This, unfortunately, has not happened.

Thirdly we wanted to make a mark in at least fifteen or so selected constituencies which we had zeroed in on and on which which had spent some money in campaigning and also extra effort (e.g. getting senior all-India leaders to speak there) . As the table will show, we have had good success in this objective, and have shown good results in such unlikely constituencies as Baharampur, Baishnab Nagar, Rampur Hat and a few others where we did not have much organizational strength.

Fourthly, we wanted to make an entry into the Assembly. In this we have failed again.

Now what?

All but the totally politically naive will know that the results of this election were principally a triumph against the CPI(M) and for the excellent conduct of the elections by the Election Commission. Mamata Banerjee and the Trinamool Congress were simply the vehicle for the people’s verdict against the CPI(M). This is not to belittle her achievements– no one at the present juncture could have been that vehicle — but just to place things in proper perspective. Positive votes are cast in the hope of getting something, like good administration, lower taxes, etc. Negative votes are cast in the hope ofrejecting something. Here there was no question of getting anything, because Mamata had promised (let alone showed) practically nothing concrete except the return of the 400 acres of Singur land to the unwilling farmers. Her manifesto of 64 pages contained 22 pages on the Railways which are irrelevant, and in the rest there were vague, sometimes meaningless (like creating an ‘employment bank’– what does it mean?) promises.

In particular she neither announced, nor does she have, a roadmap for solving the following burning problems of the state:

(a) Unemployment
(b) Financial Bankruptcy
(c) Reputation of being industry-unfriendly
(d) A totally anti-development and inert bureaucracy

(a), (c) and (d) are intimately connected, in the sense that in order to solve unemployment a state needs industry, and to lure industry it has to have a good reputation and a responsive bureaucracy. financial Bankruptcy is a different and altogether separate problem.

Now, Mamata drove away Tata Motors. Shorn of verbiage, that is the long and short of it. She has also repeatedly said that she will NEVER acquire land by force. In that case how will the industry wanting to be set up get land? And she will have to build Power plants, because the power shortage in West Bengal right now remains eclipsed because of lack of industries. Where will she get land for Power plants? Land for Power Plants is required to be near a perennial source of water, and that means fertile, multi-crop land. No farmer, certainly not after Singur, will readily agree to part with such land.

When faced with such hard decisions, Mamata will, almost always and instinctively err on the side of populism. And by doing that she will not be able to maintain her image.

Also, in the runup to the 2011 elections Mamata has reached the limit in pandering to Muslim sentiment, even fundamentalist sentiment (like humouring the highly obscurantist Peer of Furfura Sharif). Even before the elections Haji Nurul Islam, one of her MPs, had engineered a riot in Deganga, District North 24-Paraganas. While the bulk of Bengali Muslims and most of the Urdu-speaking Muslims in the state are peace-loving and wish to live in peace with their Hindu brethren, there is no denying that there is a militant, fundamentalist fringe among them who will try to take advantage of the situation and foment trouble. the result is bound to be polarization on religious lines.

Now, the only party that would protest against the wrongdoings of this fundamentalist fringe is the BJP, as it did at Deganga and Gobra in park Circus area of Kolkata and at Panchla, District Howrah. The other parties would never take the risk of angering their Muslim vote bank — it is only the BJP which has the courage to say that a crime is a crime, whether committed by a Hindu or a Muslim.

And in respect of the other problems, like industrialisation, the necessity of land acquisition and taking the bureaucracy by the horns, on which Mamata will never be able to take a proper decision and will thus push the state into economic uncertainty, BJP must come out with a bold, clear policy. A policy that will say brave new things, not the usual Left-populist garbage. Only thus, in my view, will BJP be able to step into the vacuum that is bound to arise as a result of Mamata’s populism.

And in any case, if the CPI(M) is finally eclipsed (it is a big ‘if‘, though), and the Congress and Trinamool remain in coalition who is going to form the principal opposition? It can only be the BJP!

If the BJP can factor in all these political eventualities into its political programme over the next one or two years and play its cards deftly, and build up its organization, its future should be bright in West Bengal.

BJP criticizes CPI-M leader for using foul language against Mamata

New Delhi/ Puttaparthi, Apr 24: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spokesperson Ravi Shankar Prasad on Sunday criticized Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) leader Anil Basu for using foul language against Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee at an election meeting at in Hooghly. 
"Anil Bose had used very wrong language for Mamata Banerjee. We condemn the language. It is condemnable. This is not the kind of language, which was used in the democratic politics of India. He needs to apologies to Mamataji," Prasad said.
Prasad further commented on the competition between leaders of CPI-M and Banerjee for providing reservation to minority groups, and said that religion based reservation is not permissible under Indian constitution.
"There is a competition between Mamataji and CPI-M over who gives more reservation to the minority groups. I saw that Mamataji had declared that 50 percent reservation shall be given. CPI-M is also taking in the same tunes. We want to inform Mamataji and CPI-M people that religion based reservation is not permissible under constitution," he said.
Prasad ridiculed the desperation of CPI-M leaders for winning the assembly polls by trying to communalize the ongoing elections.
"The CPI-M is showing the signs of desperation now. CPI-M is disappointed. They are envisaging their defeat. A couple of days ago I came across a statement made by Parkash Karat that if CPI-M looses in West Bengal there would be communal rites. He said like that. What does that mean? You deliberately want to communalise the elections," he added.
West Bengal's 294-member legislature will have assembly elections in six phases.
The first and second phase of voting took place on April 18 and 23 respectively.
The third phase will take place on April 27, fourth phase on May 03, fifth phase on May 07 and sixth phase on May 10.
The Left Front, led by CPI-M, has been in power in West Bengal for more than three decades.
Presently, it is facing a tough challenge from provincial main opposition Trinamool Congress and its ally Congress, who have stepped up pressure by raising simmering issues such as Maoist insurgency, corruption and unemployment.
Daily India

BJP questions Trinamool's ability to govern West Bengal

Ridiculing the Trinamool Congress' slogan for change in the forthcoming West Bengal assembly polls, BJP today questioned the ability of its former ally to govern the state if voted to power.

"The so-called alternative to the CPI(M) is hardly likely to govern well ... Their track record in running the party or the ministry (at the Centre) does not inspire the confidence that they can govern," BJP leader Arun Jaitley said at the party's mandal presidents' conference here.

Stating that the Congress-Trinamool Congress alliance "would not last", he said, "While the Trinamool Congress is dependent on one leader, the Congress is dependent on one family. Conflict has already begun between the two parties."

Jaitley said the 2011 assembly elections would be a turning point in the state's politics as also at the national level. "After this election, the Left will not have a hold on any major state government. With their defeat, the Marxists will not be a position to build a third front at the Centre."

Observing that the upcoming assembly polls have brought about a "new political churning" in the state, the Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha said that people were wary about both the CPI(M)-led Left Front and the Congress-Trinamool alliance.

"This new churning is an opportunity for us. People are now asking what is the alternative? The BJP will be the third alternative in the state on the basis of patriotism and good governance," he said.

The BJP will contest all the 294 seats in the state, Jaitley added.

DNA India

BJP show of strength in Bengal targets PM, CPM

The BJP leadership has once again trained its guns on the Congress high command and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Lambasting the UPA for giving the country the ‘grandmother’ of all scams, party president Nitin Gadkari and senior leader LK Advani said the Congress had allowed its leaders to plunder the nation and stash the loot away in foreign banks.
Launching a frontal attack, Gadkari said, “While farmers were committing suicide and youths were roaming jobless, the likes of A Raja and Suresh Kalmadi were giving shape to the Commonwealth Games and 2G scandals, devouring lakhs of crores.” Without dropping any name, he wondered “who their godfather and godmother were”.
It is evident that the BJP is taking the West Bengal election seriously. Gadkari noted how while BJP-ruled States were recording phenomenal growth, those ruled by the Congress and Left were mired in corruption. He added that this graft was the root cause of under-development. 
The BJP chief again demanded to know “why the Centre is not giving the names of those who have kept lakhs of crores of black money in foreign banks.”
Speaking out against Singh’s inherent weakness in dealing with crucial affairs, Advani reiterated that he had seen several Prime Ministers but no one as weak as the present one. “I was told that the Prime Minister was hurt because I called him a weak person. He may be a good person but he is the weakest Prime Minister because he could not stop corruption taking place in front of his eyes” he added. 
Advani pointed out that it was during Singh’s regime that a Prime Minister had to file an affidavit in the Supreme Court to explain his conduct.
Congratulating West Bengal party president Rahul Sinha for his “good work” in bringing the party alive, BJP MP and party in-charge of the State Chandan Mitra said, “The BJP has come to Bengal not to leave halfway. We have come to the State with our eyes set on the Writers’ Buildings.” 
The leaders were speaking at a huge rally in Kolkata held at the completion of a 15-day Navjagran Yatra that started from Cooch Behar in North Bengal on January 30. Mitra recalled how thousands had welcomed the party rath in various districts during the yatra.
“While the CPI(M) has unleashed a reign of oppression and terror and rendered the State poor, by inviting the Maoists to Bengal, the Trinamool claims itself to be an alternative but is the other side of the same coin,” Mitra said. 
Earlier, on the sidelines of the BJP national office bearers’ meeting, Mitra said the party would “contest from all seats in Bengal”, adding that “both the CPI(M) and Trinamool were the two sides of the same coin.”
The State was suffering from lack of growth on all sides - from health and education to industry and employment - he said, adding that Trinamool was equally corrupt and tyrannical. “The situation is such that the people have to choose between the devil and the deep sea,” said Mitra, adding that it was at this juncture that the BJP was projecting itself as a third alternative.
The BJP rally, the biggest in recent times in Bengal, was attended by a galaxy of leaders, including the Chief Ministers of Uttarakhand, Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand.
Linking corruption with continued price rise, former party president Rajnath Singh said, “While the Congress had repeatedly given the nation corrupt regimes, the CPI(M) and Trinamool Congress have helped it in its corrupt acts at different times.” 
“The Congress has stashed away lakhs of crores in foreign banks and the Trinamool and the Left have propped it at the Centre at different times,” he noted. 
Singh added that the BJP would bring all the black money back to India and “earmark between Rs 15 crore to Rs 20 crore for each village for its development.” 
The Pioneer

CPI(M), Trinamool two sides of same coin: BJP

BJP today described the ruling CPI(M) and Opposition Trinamool Congress in West Bengal as “two sides of the same coin”, while asserting that it was going to fight in nearly all the seats for the upcoming Assembly elections.

“We are going to fight in almost all the seats in West Bengal,” BJP leader Arun Jaitley said on the sidelines of the party’s national office-bearers’ meet in Kolkata.

“We regard the CPI(M) and Trinamool Congress as two sides of the same coin. CPI(M) has run the State to the ground and there is no industry, huge unemployment and public discontent,” BJP central observer Chandan Mitra said.

He said the CPI(M)-led Left Front government in West Bengal had done nothing for the development of the State in its 34-year rule.

“But at the same time, the Trinamool Congress has behaved erratically and has not been able to come up with a roadmap for the future.”

Mr. Mitra claimed that “hooligans and other criminal elements of CPI(M) have now joined the ranks of opposition Trinamool Congress.”

It is a choice between the devil and the deep sea, he said.

“We resolve to establish our presence in the coming elections,” Mr. Mitra said, adding the meet discussed the tactics and strategy that the party would follow in the elections to the five states of West Bengal, Assam, Kerala, Puducherry and Tamil Nadu.

Flaying the Congress over talks with ULFA, he said, “This could have been done five years back.

“Congress has a deal with the ULFA before every election in Assam. Now this has come in the open. We believe in peace and want it but it should not be opportunistic and election-related as is happening now.”

Mr. Mitra said the party hoped to do well in the Assam Assembly elections, stating that “BJP will be considerably strengthened given the vote polarisation in the state.”

The meeting of the office-bearers discussed reports by the in-charge of party affairs in the poll-bound states, BJP spokesperson Nirmala Sitharaman said.

She said it was also decided to hold a meeting of office-bearers on February 22 in Delhi on the upcoming Budget sessions in different States, particularly the BJP-ruled ones.

Stating that special stress would be given on ‘Antodya Scheme’ for upliftment of poor, she said, “There will be a high accent on Antodya.”

Elections for the 294-seat West Bengal Assembly are due in May.

Source: The Hindu