Bengal polls: Tough fight for CPI(M)-led Left in third phase

The third phase of the Assembly elections on April 27 in West Bengal, in which the three districts of North and South 24 Paraganas and Kolkata, comprising 75 constituencies go to polls, may be the toughest fight for the CPI(M)-led Left Front Government of West Bengal.

It was in this region that the Left suffered its worst defeats in the hands of the Railway Minister, Ms Mamata Banerjee's Trinamool Congress in the 2009 Lok Sabha elections and the municipal elections in 2010.

In fact, in the Lok Sabha elections, the Left could not win a single seat within a belt of 100 km around Kolkata. In the North 24 Paraganas, out of 33 seats, it could secure a lead in only five constituencies, four out of 31 in South 24 Paraganas, and it failed to secure a lead in any of the 11 constituencies of Kolkata.

“This is the region we are most concerned with, because it is here that we have fared the worst both in the Lok Sabha and the Municipal votes,” a CPI(M) source told Business Line .

However, it may not be a complete cakewalk for the Trinamool, as disenchantment with the party has already started surfacing among the voters.

Mr Shibu Pal of Gopalnagar village in North 24 Paraganas feels that Trinamool has failed to deliver anything since winning both the Panchayat votes and the Lok Sabha votes in the region. “When we voted for Trinamool, we expected the party to do some good work. But now people are seeing that the CPI(M) did a better job,” he told Business Line .

The biggest name in the fray in this phase is Chief Minister, Mr Buddhadeb Bhattcharjee.

Mr Bhattacharjee, who has been winning from his Jadavpur seat in South 24 Paraganas since 1987, will be looking to win the seat for the sixth consecutive time.

His opponent from Trinamool is retired bureaucrat and former chief secretary of West Bengal, Mr Manish Gupta.

Though Mr Bhattacharjee is the favourite to win here, many political observers feel that the anti-incumbency wave against the Left may make the fight a close one.

The State Finance Minister, Dr Asim Dasgupta, will also be looking to defend his seat in Khardah in North 24 Paraganas – a seat that Dr Dasgupta has not lost since 1987.

His opponent is former Secretary-General of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), Dr Amit Mitra.

Though in the Lok Sabha elections the Left trailed in this segment by over 1,400 votes, Dr Dasgupta's personal support base is still quite strong.

“He knows the most humble voters of his constituency by name, and has such a gentle disposition,” a housewife in Khardah told Business Line . “But the pro-Trinamool wave is such that it will be a tough fight for him,” she added.

One interesting constituency to observe in this particular phase would be the Kolkat Port seat.

Mr Ram Pyare Ram, six-time Congress MLA from the Kabitirtha seat (which after delimitation was merged with the Kolkata Port seat), upon not being given a ticket to contest from the region, decided to fight the election as an Independent.

Mr Ram's popularity in the region may pose to be a serious problem for Trinamool candidate Mr Firhad Hakim.

“This alliance (Congress-Trinamool seat adjustment) is ensuring the Congress gets wiped out of Bengal. I have spoken to the people of my constituency, and they would like me to contest, even as an Independent. Moreover, Congress workers at the local level are all supporting me,” Mr Ram told Business Line .

It now remains to be seen whether Mr Ram's personal appeal will prevail in the constituency, or whether it will be Mr Hakim riding on the anti-incumbency wave, or whether Left Front candidate of the Forward Bloc, Mr Moinuddin Sams, will emerge victorious from the division of votes.

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