Tag: 2021 west bengal assembly election

TMC Releases List of Star Campaigners for Bengal Assembly Bypolls on October 30

The names of actor-turned-MP Nusrat Jahan and former BJP leader Babul Supriyo, who recently joined the TMC camp, do not feature in the list.

Kolkata: West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee and Trinamool Congress (TMC) general secretary Abhishek Banerjee are among the star campaigners of the party for the October 30 bypolls to four assembly seats in the state. But, interestingly, the names of actor-turned-MP Nusrat Jahan and former Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Babul Supriyo, who recently joined the TMC camp, do not feature in the list.

The BJP’s list of campaigners features prominent national leaders.

The TMC list contains the names of actor-MPs Dev and Mimi Chakraborty, popular singer-MLA Aditi Munshi, filmmaker-MLA Raj Chakraborty, actor-turned TMC state youth wing Chief Sayani Ghosh, apart from senior leaders Subrata Mukherjee, Firhad Hakim, Sougata Roy and Arup Biswas.

Also read: What Could TMC Gain by Taking in Babul Supriyo Who Failed To Deliver for BJP in Assembly Polls

Significantly, the names of Nusrat Jahan, who had actively campaigned for the party in the Aassembly polls held in March-April, and Supriyo, who joined the party before the just-concluded Bhabanipur by poll and requested Mamata Banerjee to “save me from the embarrassment of campaigning against long-time BJP friend Priyanka Tibrewal”, do not figure in the TMC list.

The BJP list of campaigners contains names of Union minister Smriti Irani, Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sharma, MP from Bihar Giriraj Singh as heavyweights from outside the state.

The saffron party, which had roped in a number of campaigners from outside West Bengal for the assembly polls, is equally relying on the local brigade of its state president Sukanta Majumder, national vice-president Dilip Ghosh, Leader of Opposition in the state assembly Suvendu Adhikari, Union ministers and north Bengal MPs John Barla and Nisith Pramanik, Minister-MP from the Matua community Santanu Thakur, among others.

The BJP list of campaigners also contains the party’s celebrity faces — actor-turned-Rajya Sabha MP Rupa Ganguly and actor-MP Locket Chatterjee, besides fashion designer and MLA Agnimitra Paul.

Amit Shah’s New Deputy Nisith Pramanik’s Educational Qualification Triggers a Controversy

Pramanik’s Lok Sabha and assembly election affidavits show secondary exam as his highest educational qualification, but his profile on the Lok Sabha website shows contradictory information.

Kolkata: What’s the real educational qualification of Nisith Pramanik, the newly inducted minister of state for home affairs in the Union Cabinet? The Lok Sabha MP from Cooch Behar in West Bengal seemed to have provided contradictory information in his election affidavits and before the parliament.

The controversy over his educational qualification broke out after Pramanik was named the new deputy of home minister Amit Shah following the cabinet reshuffle on Wednesday.

The 35-year-old Pramanik, who recently contested in the Bengal assembly elections and won but resigned to retain his Lok Sabha membership, had written Madhyamik Pariksha or secondary exam as his highest educational qualification in both affidavits.

The one for the assembly election was submitted on March 18 this year, and the one for the Lok Sabha election was submitted on March 25, 2019.

Nisith Pramanik’s March 2021 affidavit.

However, Pramanik’s profile on the Lok Sabha website says his educational qualification is “Bachelors of Computer Applications (B.C.A.) Educated at Balakura Junior Basic School.”

Nisith Pramanik’s profile on the Lok Sabha website.

BCA is a three-year undergraduate course for which passing higher secondary, or the class 12, is mandatory.

Several Trinamool Congress (TMC) leaders from Cooch Behar district have pointed this out to be a major discrepancy.

Also read: A Cabinet Reshuffle That Holds Out No Promise of Good Governance

“In March, his highest educational qualification was to have appeared in the secondary exam – he did not clarify in his affidavit if he passed the exam. And now, in July, he has a bachelor’s degree! How can one have a bachelor’s degree without having passed the higher secondary exam?” asked former TMC MLA Udayan Guha, whom Pramanik defeated from Dinhata assembly seat by a narrow margin of 57 votes.

TMC’s former Cooch Behar MP, Partha Pratim Roy, also raised the same question on Pramanik’s different educational qualifications, in a social media post.

Guha alleged that the school that Pramanik’s Lok Sabha profile refers to is a non-descript junior school where no such course had been conducted. “This is a junior basic school for students up to class 5. How can it offer an undergraduate degree?” he asked.

The Wire could not independently verify Guha’s claims, as authorities at the Balakura Junior Basic School could not be contacted.

Local residents said that the school at Burirhat area is about 8 km away from the MP’s residence at Bhetaguri in Dinhata area.

Pramanik’s profile, however, does not mention that the school gave him the degree. It says that the course was conducted at the school. However, the profile also does not mention which institution offered the degree, even if the school premises was used as a venue.

The Wire sent Pramanik questions through text and WhatsApp messages, requesting him to offer a clarification and details of the course such as affiliation and time of completion but no response was received till the filing of this report. It will be updated as and when a reply from him is received.

Pramanik was a TMC youth wing leader in Cooch Behar district whom the party expelled in 2018, following which he joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections at the initiative of Mukul Roy, a Mamata Banerjee confidante who was at that time with the BJP. Pramanik bagged the Lok Sabha ticket and won with a comfortable margin. However, in the recently concluded assembly elections, he managed to win from Dinhata seat by a nominal margin. He did not take oath at the assembly to retain his Lok Sabha membership.

Since Mukul Roy’s switch over to the TMC last month, speculations had been doing the rounds that the TMC was also looking to get Pramanik back. Since then, Pramanik has spent substantial time in New Delhi, meeting national-level leaders.

No senior leader of Bengal BJP wanted to comment on the controversy regarding his educational qualification, saying Pramanik was the best person to answer it.

He had mentioned 11 criminal cases against him in his 2019 affidavit and 13 cases in a 2021 affidavit, including charges of murder, dacoity, theft, and possession of explosives.

Snigdhendu Bhattacharya is a journalist and author based in Kolkata.

All 77 BJP MLAs in West Bengal To Have Central Security Cover

The Union Home Ministry has approved the cover after taking into cognisance a report prepared by central security agencis.

New Delhi: All the newly elected 77 BJP MLAs in West Bengal are being provided security cover by central paramilitary forces in view of potential threats to them, official sources said on Monday.

They said the Members of the Legislative Assembly will be secured by armed commandos of the CISF and the CRPF.

The Union Home Ministry has approved the cover after taking into cognisance a report prepared by central security agencies and the inputs of a high-level fact finding team of officers that was sent to the state by the ministry in the wake of post-poll violence in the state, including that against the workers of the BJP, they said.

Sixty-one MLAs out of the 77 will be covered under the lowest ‘X’ category and the commandos will be drawn from the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), as per fresh orders of the MHA, they said.

The rest are either enjoying the central security cover or will be covered under the next higher category of ‘Y’.

Fifty-year-old Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari is already a ‘Z’ category protectee of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), they said.

“These persons face potential threat in the wake of post polls scenario in the state and hence they need to be secured,” a senior officer said.

A number of other candidates, including some turncoats, who contested the assembly polls from the BJP ticket will also continue to have the central security cover for some more time, they said.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has emerged as the main opposition party in the state, winning 77 seats in the 294-member house in the recently concluded polls where the TMC led by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee formed the government.

While there can be 3-4 armed commandos under the ‘X’ category, the configuration increases to 6-7 under the ‘Y’ cover and the ‘Z’ category brings in about 6-9 commandos for the protectee.

Both the CISF and the CRPF have specialised VIP security units in their establishment and they collectively provide security to over 140 personalities, ranging from central ministers, MPs and senior bureaucrats.

(PTI)

Mamata Banerjee Brings Back Police Officers Removed By EC, Suspends Cooch Behar SP

“The administration was not under my control for the last three months. It was under the control of the Election Commission,” the WB CM had said.

Kolkata: Within hours of assuming office, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday initiated a major reshuffle in the police hierarchy, transferring 29 top-level police officers, mostly those who were shifted by the Election Commission prior to the polls.

Among the top-level officers who have been brought back to their former positions are DG Virendra, ADG (Law and Order) Jawed Shamim and DG Security Vivek Sahay, an order issued this evening said.

The government also suspended Debashis Dhar, SP of Cooch Behar district where four persons were killed in CISF firing during polling on April 10 in Sitalkuchi constituency.

Banerjee has already ordered a CID probe into the incident.

Dhar was replaced by K. Kannan who had been sent to OCW (officer-on-compulsory-waiting) during the election.

Virendra, who was transferred by the EC, has been reinstated to his former position.

Neeraj Nayan Pandey, who had been made the DG in place of Veerendra, was now posted as DG (Fire Services).

Similarly, ADG (Law and Order) Jagmohan has been transferred to the civil defence and Jawed Shamim, who was moved out by the commission for alleged police excesses during a Left rally, has been brought back as the ADG (Law and Order).

In a separate order, Vivek Sahay, former DG Security, who was removed by the poll panel alleging lapse in security arrangements of the chief minister after she was injured in a rally in Purba Medinipur district, has been brought back to his former position.

Gyanwant Singh who worked as ADG Security during the election got back his earlier post and he has been given the additional responsibility of ADG and IGP of the Armed Police.

Another transferred officer Sanjay Singh, officer-on- compulsory-waiting, has been posted as ADG and IG of Western range.

In the morning, the chief minister had indicated that she was not happy with the ‘inefficiency’ of the police in different areas.

“The administration was not under my control for the last three months. It was under the control of the Election Commission. There is some inefficiency. We will take decisions regarding this soon,” she had said.

The state home department, in addition to this, has made some significant transfers like bringing back Monoj Verma as the commissioner of Barrackpore Commissionerate.

Verma was transferred from Barrackpore and was made IG of Counter Insurgency Force by the commission.

Similarly, Mitesh Jain who was made the commissioner of Asansol-Durgapur Commissionerate has been sent to compulsory waiting.

Ajay Thakur, presently posted as DIG, CID in the state police, was brought in his place.

Two more commissioners were transferred.

Gourav Sharma, presently working as Commissioner of Chanadannagar Police Commissionerate, has been sent to Siliguri Police Commissionerate as commissioner and Arnab Ghosh, presently posted as member secretary of West Bengal Police Reform Board, has been made the commissioner of Chandannagar in his place.

DIG, Barasat range, Mukesh has also been sent to officer-on-compulsory waiting.

The government has transferred SPs of 16 districts.

Among them are some officers who were shunted by the commission during the election.

Bhola Nath Pandey who was transferred by the commission following the attack on BJP president J P Nadda’s convoy in Diamond Harbour has been made SP of Alipurduar.

Soumya Roy who was transferred as his wife was contesting the election has been brought back as SP Howrah (Rural).

Meanwhile, the government sent Rahul Majumdar who is presently posted as joint secretary at the Chief Minister’s Office as the DM of Purulia district in place of Abhjit Mukhopadhyay.

Mukhopadhyay was sent to OCW in the personnel and administrative reforms department in the state secretariat.

(PTI)

Watch | Election Results of Four States and a Union Territory Amid COVID-19 Crisis

To know who is going ahead and whose government is going to be formed, watch this report of The Wire.

The election results have been announced in 822 assembly seats in four states and one Union Territory of the country amid the COVID-19 pandemic. To know who is going ahead and whose government is going to be formed, watch this report of The Wire.

Phase 7 of Bengal Election Ends With Over 75% Turnout, Sporadic Incidents of Violence

Voting in the penultimate phase took place for election to 34 constituencies in the assembly.

New Delhi: A total of 75.06% voter turnout was registered until 5 pm on Monday in phase seven of the West Bengal Assembly polls, the Election Commission said.

Voting took place for election to 34 constituencies in the assembly, across Paschim Bardhaman, Dakshin Dinajpur, Murshidabad, Malda and south Kolkata.

The poll panel noted that the turnout figures were provisional and that polling was held “peacefully” in 11,376 polling stations. The EC had earlier turned down possibility of holding elections in one remaining phase due to the rise in COVID-19 numbers.

In a statement, the poll panel said 5,982 (52.58%) out of 11,376 polling stations were monitored live through webcasting.

The polls were largely peaceful, although local media reported that in Asansol, Trinamool Congress candidate Sayoni Ghosh said that BJP members were attempting to block voting.

The allegation was dubbed as baseless by BJP candidate Agnimitra Paul, who asserted, “Ghosh is making excuses sensing defeat”.

Meanwhile, there was commotion in Rash Behari constituency after BJP candidate Lt Gen (retd) Subrata Saha’s agent was accused of molesting women voters inside a polling booth, police said.

Mohan Rao was detained after several women voters claimed he tried to drag them holding their hands inside Bidya Bharati School, a police officer said.

Rao, however, rubbished the allegations and said no such incident had taken place.

“We have received a complaint in this regard and a probe is underway,” the officer said.

In the Jamuria constituency, Left Front candidate Aishe Ghosh alleged that her party agents were stopped from entering the booth by TMC workers, a charge denied by the ruling party.

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee was among those who cast her vote on Monday, at a polling booth in south Kolkata’s Bhabanipur.

Banerjee, a resident of Harish Chatterjee Street, exercised her franchise at a polling booth in Mitra Institution school around 3.50 pm.


Fifteen live bombs were found in the Ballygunge assembly seat with the help of bomb squad and a fog squad, according to the EC.

On a tip off, 19 crude bombs were recovered in two bags near Hooghly Jute Mill Colony with the assistance of the bomb disposal squad.

Two miscreants carrying seven improvised country made serviceable guns and a “single barrel long musket gun” were arrested in Malda district, the EC’s statement said.

(With PTI inputs)

Bengal Polls: 23% Candidates Contesting Phase 8 Face Criminal Cases, Says ADR

The report said that 17 candidates have declared cases related to attempt to murder (IPC Section-307) against themselves.

New Delhi: Out of the 283 candidates contesting in the last phase of the West Bengal polls, 23% have declared criminal cases against themselves, a report by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) stated.

The West Bengal Election Watch and the ADR have analysed the self-sworn affidavits of all the 283 candidates from 35 constituencies, who are contesting in the polls to be held on April 29.

“Out of 283 candidates analysed, 64 (23%) candidates have declared criminal cases against themselves and 50 (18%) have declared serious criminal cases against themselves,” the report said.

Among the major parties, seven (70%) out of 10 candidates analysed from the Communist Party of India (Marxist), 11 (31%) out of 35 candidates analysed from the All India Trinamool Congress (AITC), 21 (60%) out of 35 candidates analysed from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and 10 (53%) out of 19 candidates analysed from the Congress have declared criminal cases against themselves in their affidavits.

Among the major parties, two (20%) out of ten candidates analysed from the CPI(M), eight (23%) out of 35 candidates analysed from the AITC, 18 (51%) out of 35 candidates analysed from the BJP and nine (47%) out of 19 candidates analysed from the Congress have declared serious criminal cases against themselves in their affidavits.

Twelve candidates have declared cases related to crime against women while six candidates have declared cases related to murder (Indian Penal Code Section-302) against themselves.

The report said that 17 candidates have declared cases related to attempt to murder (IPC Section-307) against themselves.

Also read: A Day After TMC, BJP Promises Free Vaccines in Bengal ‘as Soon as’ It Comes to Power

The poll rights body said 11 (31%) out of 35 constituencies are ‘red alert’ constituencies. Red alert constituencies are those where three or more contesting candidates have declared criminal cases against themselves.

The report further said that out of the 283 candidates, 55 (19%) are millionaires.

Among the major parties, 28 (80%) out of 35 candidates analysed from the AITC, five (26%) out of 19 candidates analysed from the Congress, 12 (34%) out of 35 candidates analysed from the BJP and one (10%) out of ten candidates analysed from the CPI(M) have declared assets valued more than Rs 1 crore.

The report said 52 (54%) candidates have declared their educational qualifications to be between class 5 and 12, while 127 (45%) candidates have declared having an educational qualification of graduate or above. Two candidates have declared themselves to be just literates and two candidates are illiterates.

In another report, the ADR said the average assets of 210 recontesting MLAs fielded by various parties, including independents in 2016, was Rs 1.38 crore and the average percentage growth in assets for them is 78%.

“The average asset growth for these 210 recontesting MLAs, between the West Bengal Assembly elections of 2016 and 2021, is Rs 1.07 crore,” it said.

Bengal: EC Imposes 24-hour Campaign Ban on BJP’s Sayantan Basu, TMC’s Sujata Mondal

The bar on campaigning by the leaders will be in force from 7 pm on April 18 to 7 pm on April 19.

New Delhi: The Election Commission on Sunday imposed a 24-hour campaign ban on BJP leader Sayantan Basu and Sujata Mondal of the Trinamool Congress for their controversial remarks during the ongoing assembly polls in West Bengal.

The bar on campaigning by the leaders will be in force from 7 pm on April 18 to 7 pm on April 19.

In an order, the poll panel said it had carefully considered Mondal’s reply to its notice which does not justify the relevant portions of her statement “denigrating the Scheduled Caste community in West Bengal”.

“Now, therefore, the Commission hereby sternly warns Sujata Mondal and advises her to desist from using such statement while making public utterances during the period when the Model Code of Conduct is in force,” according to the order.

Basu was issued a notice for his remarks that “if you kill one we will kill four of you…”

The Commission said the order on Basu “sternly warns and condemns Sayantan Basu and strongly advised him to desist from using such statement while making public utterances during the period when the Model Code of Conduct is in force.”

Besides warning the leaders against making such statements, the poll panel imposed a ban on campaigning by them.

Bengal: EC Bars BJP’s Rahul Sinha from Campaigning for 48 Hours, Slaps Notice on Dilip Ghosh

Sinha had said that the central forces “should have killed eight rather than four people” in Cooch Behar’s Sitalkuchi.

New Delhi: The Election Commission on Tuesday barred BJP leader Rahul Sinha from campaigning for 48 hours and slapped a notice on its West Bengal chief Dilip Ghosh over their “provocative” remarks on the killing of four people in firing by CISF during poll violence in Sitalkuchi, saying such statements could have a serious impact on law and order.

Strongly condemning Sinha’s reported remarks that central forces “should have killed eight rather than four people”, the EC said he made “highly provocative statements mocking human life and inciting the forces that could have serious law and order implications”.

The Commission said it found the remarks of the leaders violative of the model code and various provisions of the Representation of the People Act and the Indian Penal Code.

The high-octane assembly election campaign in the state, where the BJP and the Trinamool Congress have unleashed a no-holds-barred attack against each other, has seen the EC clamping down on leaders of both parties for their objectionable utterances.

On Monday, the poll panel barred West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress leader Mamata Banerjee from campaigning for 24 hours for her remarks against central forces and a statement that allegedly had religious overtones.

The EC took suo motu cognisance of Rahul Sinha’s remarks and said it decided to issue the order without giving any notice to him due to the urgency of the matter.

Also read: ‘Mini-Pakistan’: EC Lets Off BJP’s Suvendu Adhikari With Light Rap for Remark

After the Trinamool Congress approached the Commission against Ghosh over his reported remarks that there would be “Sitalkuchi in several places”, the EC asked him to respond to its notice making his stand clear on the issue by 10 AM on Wednesday.

The notice said the Commission is of the considered view that Dilip Ghosh has in violation of various clauses of the Model Code of Conduct and provisions of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 and the Indian Penal Code “made statements that are provocative and can seriously incite the emotions”.

This could “lead to a breakdown of law and order thereby adversely affecting the election process”, the notice said.

The ban on Sinha begins at 12 noon on Tuesday and will remain in force till 12 noon of April 15, the order said.

The order quoted the text of Sinha’s speech in which he said, “The central forces have given them a befitting answer. If they do it again they will be dealt again in a befitting manner.

“The central forces should have killed eight persons instead of four in Sitalkuchi. The central forces should be issued a show-cause notice as to why they have killed only four of them.”

Also read: Election Commission Bans Mamata Banerjee From Campaigning for 24 Hours

The order said, “Commission hereby strongly condemns the above statements made by Rahul Sinha, BJP, and sternly warns him to be careful from using such statements while making public utterances during the period when Model Code of Conduct is in force,” according to the order.

Four men were killed at a booth in the Sitalkuchi assembly constituency in Cooch Behar during the fourth phase polling on April 10 as CISF personnel opened fire after coming under attack from locals who “attempted to snatch their rifles”.

The EC notice against Ghosh cited his alleged remarks in which the BJP leader said, “Where did so many naughty boys come from? Those naughty boys were shot at yesterday in Shitalkuchi. These naughty boys will not be there in Bengal.”

“This is just the beginning. Those who thought that the central forces’ rifles were meant to be just for a show have well understood now the power of cartridges… there will be Shitalkuchi in several places. So be careful”.

He also reportedly said that “this will be carried on throughout Bengal. Those who will take the law in their own hands will be given a befitting answer.”

The eight-phase assembly polls in West Bengal are being held between March 27 and April 29.

‘Not Four, Eight People Should Have Been Shot Dead in Sitalkuchi’: BJP Leader Rahul Sinha

The TMC has asked the Election Commission to take action against BJP leaders propagating violence.

New Delhi: A few days after violence marred the fourth phase of the West Bengal assembly elections with the Cooch Behar firing incident, a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) senior state leader, Rahul Sinha, said the security forces should have killed eight people instead, and not just four, news reports said.

On Saturday, violence broke out at one polling station of the Sitalkuchi seat in Cooch Behar, where four people died after the CISF fired at them and one died due to firing by unknown persons.

According to reports, police said the firing occurred after some people tried to “snatch weapons” from the CISF.

“Not four, eight people should have been shot dead in Sitalkuchi. The central forces should be issued a showcause notice asking why they killed only four and not eight…Goons are trying to deprive people of their democratic rights. Central forces responded appropriately. If it happens again, they will answer again,” Sinha told the Indian Express on Sunday evening.

Sinha reportedly blamed the Trinamool Congress (TMC) for the fifth death that occurred on the same day. “An 18-year-old boy was shot dead in public at a polling station for supporting BJP and their leader is Mamata Banerjee,” he told the daily.

In a similar incident, West Bengal BJP president Dilip Ghosh Sunday said more Cooch Behar-like killings may happen in the next phase of assembly elections if “dustu chelera” (bad boys) do not behave in the coming election phases.

Also read: Why Bengal’s Elections Are Far More Complex Than TMC’s Corruption and BJP’s Communal Drive

TMC urges strict action against BJP leaders for “instigating” violence

According to PTI, the TMC on Monday urged the Election Commission to take strict action against BJP leaders who allegedly made inflammatory remarks over the Cooch Behar firing incident that claimed the lives of “four unarmed civilians”.

In a letter to West Bengal chief electoral officer Ariz Aftab, the party said several BJP leaders, including Ghosh, were “instigating” violence with their warnings of more Cooch Behar-like episodes.

Citing the first instance, the letter said, “On April 11, 2021, at a rally in Baranagar, Dilip Ghosh said people have seen what happened at Sitalkuchi and warned that if anyone oversteps boundary, the incident of Sitalkuchi will be repeated. An official complaint has already been lodged with the CEO.”

The letter, signed by TMC MPs Sudip Bandyopadhyay and Derek O’Brien, also mentioned of similar remarks made by BJP leaders Rahul Sinha and Sayantan Basu.

“The top brass of the BJP has been actively condoning the murder and brazenly suggesting that more innocent lives should have been lost at the hands of central armed police forces,” the TMC said.

The party demanded that “appropriate legal action, including criminal proceedings, be taken against Ghosh, Sinha, Basu and others for their inflammatory statements”.

(With inputs from PTI)