Message from Haldia

THE Opposition parties campaign against the West Bengal governments moves for land acquisition for industrial projects in Singur and Nandigram failed a major political test on July 25, when the results of the elections to the Haldia Municipal Board in Purbo (East) Medinipur district were declared. The Left Front, led by the Communist Party of India (Marxist), convincingly retained control of the Municipal Board, winning 19 of the 26 seats. The CPI(M) won 17 seats and the Communist Party of India (CPI) two. The Opposition, led by Mamata Banerjees Trinamul Congress, formed a ground-level alliance of parties opposed to the CPI(M) the Congress and a motley group of other small parties and individuals, including Siddiqullah Chowdhurys Jamait-e-Ulema-e-Hind, which backed the newly formed Peoples Democratic Conference of India (PDCI). The alliance secured seven seats Trinamul Congress six and the PDCI one.

Although a section of Trinamul Congress leaders claimed that theirs was a victory of sorts in that they managed to wrest seven seats from the CPI(M), which made a clean sweep in 2002 elections, CPI(M) sources say that the wards that the Left lost were not its traditional strongholds. Also, CPI(M) State secretary and Polit Bureau member Biman Bose pointed out that successful CPI(M) candidates won by a margin of over 1,000 votes whereas the Oppositions victory margins were narrow. He saw this victory as a popular mandate for the State governments industrial drive, especially in and around Haldia.

However, the numerical calculations do not adequately bring out the political significance of the results. This election was purported to be a dress rehearsal for a grand alliance among all the Opposition parties (with the exception of the Bharatiya Janata Party, which has practically no presence in the State) led by Mamata Banerjee against the Left Front for the coming panchayat elections and the West Bengal Assembly elections.

The other important aspect is the issue of industrialisation through private capital, domestic and foreign, which has been looming large over the political firmament of West Bengal. For the last seven months, there has been a huge controversy over the State governments move for land acquisition at Nandigram, close to Haldia, for the establishment of a chemical hub. This was a major campaign issue in the Haldia elections. The results have come as a shot in the arm for Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee and Industries Minister Nirupam Sen.

The Trinamul Congress and its allies banked completely on the Nandigram issue and were hoping to repeat their success in the civic elections in nearby Panskura in May. Riding high on rhetoric alone, they failed to convert charges into votes. The results have thrown a spanner in the works of Mamata Banerjee, who, after carrying her protest from Nandigram to Haldia, planned to take her campaign to the other areas of the State. As for the Congress, its dismal performance has once again prompted its leaders to reconsider the viability of an alliance with the Trinamul Congress.