WEST BENGAL: CHRONICLES OF NARADA

Though it put a brave face on its rejection by the people, the BJP is unlikely to forget its electoral humiliation in West Bengal in a hurry.

- Romita Datta

Though it put a brave face on its rejection by the people, the BJP is unlikely to forget its electoral humiliation in West Bengal in a hurry. The saffron camp first escalated the post-poll violence into an issue meriting President’s rule. But when it realised the move reeked of political vendetta, the party pulled out another old weapon in its arsenal—the Narada scam.

It began with West Bengal governor Jagdeep Dhankhar acceding to the CBI’s (Central Bureau of Investigation) request to prosecute four Trinamool Congress (TMC) leaders on May 7. Strangely, the CBI had made the request sometime in January this year. The governor chose to respond to it three days before Mamata’s cabinet, which included two of the accused ministers, was to be sworn in.

Ten days later, on May 17, in an early morning swoop, the CBI picked up the four TMC leaders—the current panchayat minister Subrata Mukherjee, transport & housing minister Firhad Hakim, Madan Mitra and ex-Kolkata mayor Sovan Chatterjee—all of whom were part of Mamata’s cabinet between 2014 and 2016. They now stand charged under Section 120B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code, and Sections 7 (gratification by public servant) and 13 (criminal misconduct by public servant) of the Prevention of Corruption Act (PCA). However, the marquee defector and recently-anointed leader of the opposition Suvendu Adhikary and BJP national vice-president Mukul Roy have been left out in the charge sheet. A lower court granted the TMC leaders bail, but the Calcutta High Court stayed the bail order. Mamata herself sat on a six-hour dharna at the CBI’s Nizam Palace office in Kolkata, urging them to rel ease her partymen or arrest her too. TMC supporters clashed with security personnel.