It has become apparent nowadays in West Bengal that if you have to do politics, that should be evolved around a dead body!
It has been increasingly seen today that the Bengal politicians have turned on and on in front of the television camera and people have seen them mourning for a victim so far unknown to them. Therefore, suddenly the unfortunates turn out to be political activists! Both the government and the opposition start claiming that the victim was their own ‘party-cadre’! This dirty practice of politicizing death has begun only for 2 or 3 years.
Starting with the incident of Barasat, a number of events will only affirm that there is obviously a dirty politics conspiring around some brutal killings. What happened in Barasat, a township area in North 24 Pargana district? Rajiv Das, a 17 year old Madhyamik examinee was butchered to death while trying to save his sister from the eve teasers. On that sinister night, Rinku Das, Rajiv’s sister was returning from work. She is a divorcee and sings at a bar in Kolkata. On that day, she had to work late and had to avail the last train to return home. Her brother came to the station to take her back. But, the poor souls didn’t know that 3 local goons were waiting for them in the midway. They persuaded and halted the bike, started teasing Rinku and tried to kidnap her. Rajiv protested. But, the goons captured him and began beating him mercilessly. Rinku relentlessly screamed for help but nobody came. There were at least 5 policemen on their duty that night as the district magistrate and the police super live nearby. But, they turned their back on the helpless siblings while the anti-socials stabbed Rajiv to death. When the dead body came for funeral, the chief minister of West Bengal was already at the Das ‘Capital’. The opposition Trinamul Congress Party (TMC) had already started protesting outside, screaming and creating chaos, whiles their leader and our rail minister, Mamata Banerjee announced, ‘the poor boy was our party member!’. Partha Chatterjee, the spokesperson of TMC claimed in front of television camera, ‘we are proud enough that Rajiv Das was our party member!’ (Rajiv was a Madhyamik Examinee and had nothing to do with TMC or CPM) He went on claiming, ‘this is a deliberate conspiracy of the ruling party.’ Not only that, while each and everyone started questioning the role of administrative service in West Bengal, TMC had arranged a hearse to carry the dead body for funeral. That was too much for the friends and relatives of Rajiv-Rinku. They refused to take the hearse and did the funeral by their own. Rinku later said in front of television camera, Rajiv was a mere teenager, and had nothing to do with the green or the red party. The upcoming legislative election has transformed the poor soul into a party cadre from nowhere!
If we look back, we can see a number of incidents of same kind. A few months ago, a student in Andul College was killed out of a clash between the supporters of leftist Student Federation of India (SFI) and Trinamul Congress Chhatro Parishad (TMCP). Swapan Koley, the poor deceased was a member of SFI. But, as the body was released for funeral, SFI carried it to the party office; TMC had clearly envisioned the upcoming ‘danger’ and suddenly arranged for the corpse of Sanatan Hembram from the agitated ‘Jangal Mahal’ to compete the race. Unfortunately, later the Maoists claimed that Sanatan Hembram was one of their cadres, who had become green out of the blue! What a contrast!
But, from where did it all begin? When did the game start running? We have to step a few years back therefore. Rizwanur Rahman’s death stirred West Bengal massively. When the corpse was found on a rail-track, there was a huge speculation whether it was a murder or a suicide. Later, we came to know that Rizwanur’s millionaire father-in-law, the Lux Cozy business tycoon Pradip Todi and his brothers were involved in the conspiracy. But, it was yet to be announced whether it is a murder or a suicide. As the case was handed over to CBI (Central Bureau of Investigation) from CID, the state investigating agency, Rizwanur’s brother Rukbanur began to be seen in front of media, claiming the ruling party’s involvement. Meanwhile, Rukbanur-Rizwanur’s mother, Begum Kishwar Zahan was being seen in the party-meetings arranged by the opposition TMC, holding Mamata’s hand, saying, ‘Mujhe Insaaf Dila Dijiye!’ (‘Bring me justice!’). Rukbanur took a step forward and stood in the municipal election as a TMC candidate. But, alas! Unlike, Asif Ali Zardari in Pakistan, Rajiv Gandhi in India and somewhat like Zaroslaw Kachzynsky in Poland, Rukbanur failed to gain the ‘sympathy vote’. It was too late for Rukbanur and TMC as people of Bengal had already realized the colour of politics evolving around a tragic consequence.
But, that could not stop politicizing death in West Bengal. The severity is increasing day by day. It is increasingly felt, how one needs a colourless, neutral state to live in. And what about our ‘intellectuals’? The backbone of the society also could not keep themselves away from the colour politics. They light candles and march through the streets of Kolkata, protesting against the death of Rizwanur, against Nandigram, Singur, but they never raised their voice against the merciless butchering in ‘Jangal Mahal’. They create sensation over a murder, but they do not care about the bullet-riddled dead bodies lying on the streets of ‘Jangal Mahal’ every day. Who are those people? Why are they being killed? Who is behind those killings? Why Maoist posters are being found beside the corpses beyond identification? Everybody knows the answer. But, the so-called backbone remains silent because perhaps these dead bodies have no colour!
How can they protest for the colourless, being engrossed in the politics of colour themselves?
Suchetana Chakraborty
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