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Kolkata: Two days before the West Bengal panchayat polls, Governor Dr C.V. Ananda Bose quoted from a Shah Rukh Khan film and Shakespeare’s Hamlet and Macbeth, to launch a scathing attack on the newly-appointed State Election Commissioner Rajiva Sinha. Accusing Sinha of being “knee-deep in sins”, the governor reminded him to “not underestimate the power of the common man” — a line repeatedly used by actor Shah Rukh Khan in his 2013 release Chennai Express.
Talking about “murders most foul [an allusion to Hamlet]”, the governor also urged the election commissioner to act, cautioning that else “all the perfume in Arabia cannot sweeten your little hand [a Macbeth allusion]”.
The governor was referring to alleged political violence in the state in the run-up to the 8 July polls, and the State Election Commission’s (SEC) “failure to stop it”. Bose had Monday given Sinha 48 hours to rein in the violence.
Addressing the media at the Raj Bhavan in Kolkata Thursday, the last day of campaigning for the panchayat polls, Bose said: “They are playing with human lives. Who is responsible for this violence? The SEC should know who are the killers. The SEC is knee-deep in water of sins. I appointed you. You disappointed the people. You failed your duty.”
He added: “If democracy is dead during these panchayat elections, who is the killer? Will the state election commissioner please raise his hand?” I have a commitment to the people of Bengal. I owe it to the people. Voice of the people is the voice of God. I came to the land where the mind is held without fear. I am disillusioned that the mind is full of fear.”
The governor further cited his field visits to areas from where violence was reported, such as South 24 Parganas and North Bengal.
Addressing the SEC, he pointed out: “You are armed with all authority to hold peaceful elections. The police are under you, the magistrates are under you, the state machinery is under you during the elections. So why this gruesome violence, repeated violence, spiraling violence, murders most foul?”
Bose further said: “Choose well, Mr. SEC. If you fail in making the right choice, all the perfume in Arabia cannot sweeten your little hand, all the waters in the Holy Ganges cannot wash away the blood in your hands. Do not ever underestimate the power of the common man. He is not alone. The Constitution is with him. The law of the land is with him.”
ThePrint reached Sinha for response on the allegation over Whatsapp, but the election commissioner declined comment.
While Sinha hasn’t responded to the allegations made against him publicly either, the governor’s sharp remarks have triggered a fresh face-off between the Raj Bhavan and the Trinamool Congress (TMC)-led West Bengal government.
TMC MP Abhishek Banerjee, while addressing the media Thursday, hit out at Bose, saying “such intellectual persons should be in BJP’s [Bharatiya Janata Party] double-engine government, like in Manipur and Madhya Pradesh”.
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‘Menace of violence’
The Trinamool Congress Monday had complained to the SEC against Bose, alleging that he was running a “parallel administration” in the state.
Bose had, on the other hand, returned Sinha’s joining file after the SEC skipped multiple meetings scheduled with him at Raj Bhavan.
The Governor Wednesday formed a Peace and Social Integration Committee headed by former Chief Justice of Calcutta High Court Subhro Kamal Mukherjee.
“The committee will study the menace of violence in society and how it will affect the student community, the future generation and the education system in West Bengal,” a statement by Raj Bhavan said.
According to media reports, at least 17 people have been killed and dozens injured in poll-related violence in Bengal. Amid reports of sporadic clashes across the state and five deaths since the Model Code of Conduct was imposed, 822 companies of central forces have been deployed in the state, following an order of the Calcutta High Court.
Apart from political violence, state opposition leaders, including Suvendu Adhikari of the BJP and Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury of the Congress, have alleged duplication of ballot papers ahead of the polls.
In view of the allegation, the governor had asked the SEC to make an effective investigation into the printing of ballot papers and prevent duplication activities.
(Edited by Nida Fatima Siddiqui)
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