निर्वाचित भएकै भोलिपल्ट पहाड़का विधायकहरूले राजीनामा दिनुपर्छ-सोलिडारिटी फोरम
मनोज बोगटी, कालिमन्युज, 11 मई, कालेबुङ। यदि गोर्खाल्याण्ड माग्ने नेताहरू सॉंच्चै मुद्दाप्रति इमान्दार छन् भने निर्वाचित विधायकहरूले विधानसभामा जानअघि नै सामुहिक राजीनामा दिनुपर्छ। विधायकहरूको राजीनामा नै गोर्खाल्याण्डको निम्ति ठूलो उपलब्धी हुनेछ। पश्चिम बङ्गाल विधानसभाले गोर्खाल्याण्डको प्रस्ताव पारित गर्दैन। उक्त कुरा आज पहिलोचोटि कालेबुङ आएर एक पत्रकार सम्मेलनको आयोजना गर्दै सिप्सु हत्याकाण्डको लगत्तै पछि 25 फरवरीको दिन गोर्खाल्याण्डको समर्थनमा गठन भएको सिक्किमको एक अराजनैतिक संस्था सिक्किम सोलिडारिटी फोरम फर गोर्खाल्याण्डका मूल संयोजक भरत बस्नेतले भनेका हुन्।
पश्चिम बङ्गाल विधानसभाबाट गोर्खाल्याण्डको निम्ति केही नहुने बताउँदै तिनले भने, विधानसभामा सदस्य हुनु नै थियो भने गोर्खाल्याण्डको आवाज उठाउनु हुने थिएन। पहिला गोरामुमोले पनि विधायक बनाएर पठायो। त्यसभन्दा अघि पनि पठाएकै हो। तर उपलब्धी भने केही भएन। तिनले, जनताले जति दिनपर्ने समर्थन दिइसकेको, गर्नपर्ने कार्य गरिसकेको भएपनि पहाड़का नेताहरूबाट नै जनताले फेल खाएको बताए। सिप्सु हत्याकाण्डको प्रसंग झिक्दै तिनले बङ्गालले पहाड़को जनतालाई अन्याय, अत्याचार गरिरहेको भएपनि पहाड़मा केवल भोटको राजनीति भइरहेको बताए। यहॉंका नेताहरूले केवल आफ्नो स्वार्थ मात्र हेर्ने गरेको आरोप लगाउँदै तिनले भने, यसपल्टको पश्चिम बङ्गाल चुनाव दार्जीलिङ भूभागमा पनि भयो। सबै दलहरू छुट्टा-छुट्टै लड़े। यहॉंको जनताले भन्दा धेर हामी बाहिर बस्ने मानिसहरूले महसुस गर्यौं कि यहॉंका नेताहरूमा सत्ता सुसुप्त अनि व्यक्तिगत स्वार्थ धेर रहेको छ।
दार्जीलिङ पहाड़का नेताहरू इमान्दार छैनन्। जसको ज्वलन्त उदाहरण सुवास घिसिङ हुन्। जसले गोर्खाल्याण्डको नाममा आन्दोलन गरेर 12 सय शहीद बनाए तीनै सुवास घिसिङले अहिले आएर गोर्खाल्याण्ड नै मागेको थिइनँ भन्नै गैर-जिम्मेवारीपूर्ण वक्तव्य दिइरहेका छन्। तिनले सिक्किम विधानसभामा गोर्खाल्याण्डको प्रस्ताव पारित गरिनु सराहनीय अनि स्वागतयोग्य कार्य रहेको भएपनि पहाड़का कतिपय दलहरूले यस्तो ठूलो कार्य समेतलाई केवल चुरनको नोट भनेर दिएको वक्तव्य दुर्भाग्यपूर्ण रहेको बताए। दार्जीलिङ पहाड़को निम्ति छुट्टै राज्यको समर्थन अनि आन्दोलन अवधी छिमेकी राज्य सिक्किमले भोग्न परिरहेको सम्स्या यी दुवैको निम्ति नै फोरम गठन गरिएको पनि तिनले जनाए। फोरमको अन्य कुनै स्वार्थ नरहेको बताउँदै केवल मानवता, जातीयता अनि राष्ट्रियताको भावना लिएर जनतालाई अवगत गराउन नै आज कालेबुङ आएको जनाए। आज भएको पत्रकार सम्मेलनमा फोरमका सचिव रूद्र खतिवड़ा, प्रचार-प्रसार सचिव विकास भूजेल, विनोद त्रिखत्री लगायात अन्य सदस्यहरूको पनि उपस्थिति रहेको थियो।
Morcha keen to join govt for Gorkhaland Resign-and-contest threat from hill outfit
TT, Gangtok, May 11: Sikkim chief minister Pawan Chamling will embark on a month-long tour of all 31 Assembly constituencies in the state next week to review the progress of government projects and interact directly with the people.
TT, Siliguri, May 11: The government has asked all schools in Siliguri to declare a holiday on Friday when counting of votes will be held so that students do not get entangled in any “untoward incident” after the announcement of the results.
TT, Alipurduar, May 11: The Mujnai tea estate is set to reopen tomorrow with the new management having visited the garden today.
Morcha keen to join govt for Gorkhaland Resign-and-contest threat from hill outfit
 |
| A Morcha rally on NH55 on the outskirts of Siliguri. File pictur |
Abhijit Sinha,TT, Siliguri, May 11: The Gorkha Janmukti Morcha will approach Mamata Banerjee to let the party join the new government in case her alliance comes to power
But the Morcha has also set a rider: the state would have to accept in principal its Gorkhaland demand. If it fails, the Morcha would get its MLAs to resign and then contest the bypoll, repeating the process till the government accepted its demand.
Under existing laws, the Election Commission said it could do little to stop the Morcha from carrying out its threat, a tactic to keep the new government under pressure.
“We have supported the Congress-Trinamul alliance in the Dooars and the Terai. So we have every right to want to participate in the new government if the alliance comes to power,” said party spokesperson Harka Bahadur Chhetri.
“In case our demand is turned down outright, then we shall resign as there is no point in sitting in the Opposition. The GNLF sat in the Opposition for all these years but achieved nothing.”
Chhetri, however, said the Morcha would not apply pressure on the new government to clear its stand on this statehood demand “from day one” but would give it “sufficient time” to make up its mind.
Chhetri said his party was confident of winning not only the three hill seats of Darjeeling, Kurseong and Kalimpong but also Kalchini in the Dooars.
“We will either be a part of the government or resign from the Assembly, particularly if it is proved beyond doubt that Trinamul and the Congress will not accept our key demand for Gorkhaland,” Chhetri said.
He added that the Morcha had given Mamata a warm reception when she had come to Darjeeling as railway minister and shared a “good” relationship with her.
Mamata has so far said that she was against a further break-up of Bengal but has repeatedly asserted that she will sort out the problem of the hills if she comes to power. She said she would take every segment of the state along with her. “They are our brothers,” Mamata had said in the past, referring to the Gorkha population in the hills.
During her campaign in north Bengal, Mamata had also said she would resolve the hill imbroglio “within 100 days of coming to power”.
The Morcha spokesperson said bypolls would have to be held if his party MLAs resigned. “And we will contest the bypolls too and again resign. Another bypoll would be held and the process would continue,” Chhetri said.
Election Commission officials said they could do nothing to stop the Morcha from contesting the bypolls repeatedly, especially if the party changed its candidates overtime.
“Such a situation has never arisen,” an election commission official said. “We will have to examine it closely. But so far there is nothing to stop them from going ahead with it.”
Chhetri said several problems across the hills that can be resolved only if Gorkhaland is formed.
“These are related to drinking water, education, employment and communication,” Chhetri said. “We sincerely feel that all these can be solved only if a separate state is carved out of Bengal.”
Morcha sources said that after a new government is formed in Bengal the party would focus only on Gorkhaland as otherwise, the next administration would merely try to “pacify” the hills by offering them sops.
“This has happened in the past too. But this time we will not allow it to happen,” said a Morcha leader.
Chamling’s state tour to review projects
 |
| Pawan Chamling: Mass man? |
Heads of all departments will accompany Chamling during the tour from May 17 to June 21.
“The tour will be to assess and review the works undertaken by the state government after the chief minister came to power in 1994. All heads of departments and the additional chief secretary will be travelling with the chief minister, as decided at a meeting of officials at the secretariat here yesterday,” said a government official.
“We will see where our weaknesses lie and even take decisions on the spot. Such activity will be a new experiment not only for the state but even for the entire country,” Chamling had said at the meeting.
According to the itinerary, the chief minister will start his tour from Namchi, the headquarters of South Sikkim district, on May 17. After visiting all constituencies in the district and interacting with the people, he will return to Gangtok to inaugurate the artificial turf at Paljor Stadium on May 28.
Chamling will set out for West Sikkim the next day and assess the projects in the district till June 4.
The trip to North Sikkim will begin on June 6. The chief minister will visit the high altitude areas (above 11,000ft) of Yumthang, Lachung and Lachen, besides Namphirkdang, the gateway to the Lepcha reserve of Dzongu. The North Sikkim tour will culminate on June 10.
After a gap of two days, Chamling will go to East Sikkim on June 13 and visit Kupup, Sherathang and Gnathang near Nathu-la. He will also visit Pakyong and Rongli before wrapping up the tour on June 21.
“The chief minister will inspect development works and review the progress in the implementation of various government schemes. He will listen to people’s grievances and might take decisions on the spot. That is why the department heads had been asked to accompany the chief minister. This is for the first time in India that a chief minister is embarking on such an extensive tour of the state,” said Bhim Dahal, the press adviser to the chief minister.
Classes off on counting day
 |
| A paramilitary force jawan stands guard at Jalpaiguri Polytechnic Institute on Wednesday. The institute is a vote counting centre. Picture by Biplab Basak |
The counting of votes cast in Siliguri, Matigara-Naxalbari and Phansidewa Assembly constituencies will be held at Siliguri College.
“I have appealed to all private educational institutions here to suspend classes on Friday so that after the completion of the counting, the students do not face any untoward incident,” Siliguri subdivisional officer Saurav Pahari told journalists here today.
Pahari had cited the same reason when he issued an order yesterday through the district inspector of schools, asking all government-aided schools in the subdivision to suspend their regular classes on May 13.
The SDO held a meeting with representatives of all major political parties in his chamber this afternoon to discuss the preparations for the counting. Pahari said a three-tier security would be put in place at the college during the counting, which will commence at 8am. For the three constituencies, there will be one room each for counting.
“Votes stored in EVMs will be counted in 24 rounds for Matigara-Naxalbari constituency, while it will take 23 rounds for Siliguri and 20 rounds for Phansidewa. Further, no vehicles, except those of election officials and police, can be parked within the 100 metre radius of the counting centre. There is a similar restriction on the entry of vehicles to the college campus as well,” said the SDO.
The district armed police will form the first tier of security, while the state armed police will be in charge of the second tier. The paramilitary forces will form the third tier of security.
“Political parties can set up makeshift offices 100 metres from the counting centre. Prohibitory orders under 144 CrPC will also be in force within the 100 metre radius of the counting centre,” said Pahari.
The administration has also barred processions from the date of counting till May 18.
Mujnai to open today with wage & ration
 |
| The workers welcome the management members at Mujnai on Wednesday. Picture by Anirban Choudhury |
A week earlier, the same management had refused to open the estate, citing lawlessness on its premises. Based on the complaint of lawlessness, the Jalpaiguri district magistrate yesterday convened a meeting with the management and the trade union leaders. The management agreed to visit the garden today and open it tomorrow.
The management has also agreed to disburse the wages for December 2010 to the workers tomorrow to be followed by ration for a fortnight the next day. Mujnai has 999 permanent workers.
Around 11.45am, when the general manager of Anjuman Tea Company Ltd Rupinder Singh Ranawat accompanied by garden manager Kamal Singh and DBITA member Sanjoy Bagchi arrived, nearly 300 workers welcomed them with flowers. They pleaded with the management not to abandon the garden. The DBITA or the Dooars Branch of the Indian Tea Association is an organisation of planters.
The previous owner of Mujnai, 60km from Alipurduar town, had abandoned it last year in the middle of December without intimating the administration. Last month, Ratan Jha, an impostor posing as the new owner of the garden, had been arrested.
Today, the trade union leaders requested the labourers to put in their best effort so that the garden could be revived soon.
Rabin Rai, a member of the Jalpaiguri district committee of Citu, said: “I have told the labourers that many people will try to misguide them. These people should be avoided. This management has agreed to pay the wage and ration timely. Hopefully the garden will revive very soon.”
Ranawat today said there was no question of retrenching workers. “Some people with vested interest had misguided the workers who did not accept the wages and the ration that we had disbursed for them earlier. These people had told the workers that we might go for retrenchment. But we had never planned any such thing.”
Another wrong information that had reached the workers was that they would get to work for only four days a week, Ranawat said.
“We had filed an FIR against R.K. Jha who illegally occupied the garden and claimed that he was the owner. A few workers were supporting him. Within six months, the dependants of retired or dead workers will be recruited and those who had gone outside to work will be told to return within a month.”
The new management said the workers would have to put in eight hours daily in the garden. “We will clear 50 per cent of the pending dues. Tomorrow we will reopen the garden and the factory will also be renovated. Under the provident fund package announced by the Centre, we will gradually clear the gratuity.”
Jail for drug peddlers
TT, Siliguri, May 11: Two persons were today sentenced to seven years of rigorous imprisonment for possessing drugs.
Gauranga Mondal of Badrajote in Kharibari and Shankar Mohanto of Jalpai More were arrested on March 10, 2009, from Darjeeling More. The police had also recovered 12kg of cannabis from them. The verdict was pronounced by the additional district and session judge of second court today. The court has also imposed a fine of Rs 50,000 on each of them and if the fine is not paid, the duo will have to spend another year in the jail.
Himul plea
TT, Siliguri: The Himul Milk Agents’ Association submitted a memorandum to Siliguri mayor Gangotri Datta on Wednesday, demanding an all-party meeting to revive the Himul milk plant and regularise the milk supply. There are 400-500 agents and sub-agents who sell milk everyday and they will become jobless if the supply is stopped, the members said.
Two arrested
TT, Jaigaon: Two persons were arrested from Hasimara on Wednesday and a Mitsubishi Pajero, suspected to have been stolen, was recovered. Police said Kazi Biswakarma and Dinesh Singh, both residents of Siliguri, were suspected to be members of a vehicle smuggling racket. The duo were coming from Bhutan and it is suspected that the car had been stolen. They were produced in the court of the chief judicial magistrate in Alipurduar and remanded in police custody for 10 days.
Boy rescued
TT, Balurghat: The GRP of Bansihari Station rescued a 10-year-old boy from the platform on Wednesday. GRP sources said Indrajit Das had fled his house at Gaisal in North Dinajpur after his father had scolded him on Wednesday morning. He boarded a train and got off in Malda. From Malda, he took a train to Balurghat and got down at Bansihari. The boy has been handed over to the South Dinajpur police.
Jumbo attack
TT, Jaigaon: Bimal Oraon, 45, was killed after an elephant attacked him at North Khairbari near Madarihat on Wednesday. Foresters said Bimal had gone to take bath in a river in Titi forest when the animal attacked him.
Trinamool hopes to make a dent in CPM fort
Madhuparna Das, IE, May 10 , Midnapore:Two years ago, Mamata Banerjee created a sort of history after the Trinamool got a lead in the Midnapore assembly segment in 2009 Parliamentary election. Though the CPI candidate Prabodh Panda finally defeated Trinamool candidate Dipak Ghosh in Midnapore Parliamentary constituency by 48,000 votes, it was the first time the Opposition could leave its mark. This lead (of 2,800 votes) in the Midnapore assembly segment was no mean achievement for Trinamool as it started the erosion of the Left’s votebank which became further clear during the municipality elections in 2010 in which the Trinamool captured 10 of 24 wards in Midnapore town while the Congress got 4 and the Left Front got 9 wards.
Emboldened by the result of two previous elections in Midnapore, Trinamool candidate Mrigen Maity, the party’s district president, joined the poll fray with the hope that in the Junglemahal, where the Left is expected to get almost all the seats, he would manage to have at least one seat—-Midnapore.
Maity, who was the president of the TMC-backed workers’ union — State Government Employee’s Federation - for 20 years, became influential after he proposed Mamata to spread the influence of the party in Junglemahal. Maity is also the TMC man who introduced Chhatradhar Mahato to senior party leaders. However, after Chhatradhar’s decision to contest in the election, Maity was criticised in the party.
“I introduced Chhatradhar to Mamata Banerjee and he joined our party in 2007. He was a very powerful tribal leader and he appeared to me as the right man through whom we would be able to spread our organisation in Lalgarh. Later, when he started spearheading the Lalgarh movement, though he was not officially a party member we supported their cause. But after some time, Chhatradhar developed an ideological shift and became completely detached from our party,” said Maity.
“I introduced Chhatradhar to Mamata Banerjee and he joined our party in 2007. He was a very powerful tribal leader and he appeared to me as the right man through whom we would be able to spread our organisation in Lalgarh. Later, when he started spearheading the Lalgarh movement, though he was not officially a party member we supported their cause. But after some time, Chhatradhar developed an ideological shift and became completely detached from our party,” said Maity.
“I have undergone the trauma of being evicted from home and village. In Midnapore assembly constituency, there are thousands of villagers who are still homeless and they are living away from their own place. My aim is to restore peace in the area, so that the displaced people can come back,” said Maity.
The Left Front has fielded Santosh Rana of CPI in Midnapore constituency against Maity. Rana is the sitting MLA in Midnapore. Rana, the secretary of the CPI district committee, said, “The Trinamool would never be able to make any dent in any of the assembly segments in the district. Our main agenda is peace in Junglemahal by uprooting TMC-Maoists alliance.” In 2006 assembly election, Rana had a lead of 57,000 votes in Midnapore assembly constituency.
TMC elated, LF calls it a gimmick
TNN, May 12, KOLKATA: The exit poll results evoked sharp reactions from both sides of the political divide. While the Left Front dismissed them as mere "gimmick and an attempt in vain to demoralize their workers", the Congress-Trinamool alliance hailed it as a confirmation of the fact that a "change" was imminent.
Most surveys done by private TV channels predicted a landslide victory for the Trinamool-Congress alliance, with one pegging the number of Left seats at just 60. CPM veteran Rabin Deb claimed that the exit polls were manipulated. "They serve no purpose other than confusing voters. This time, they are clearly aimed at breaking the morale of our workers who have been bravely fighting the Trinamool Congress. Exit poll results have never been correct for West Bengal and this time it won't be any different. Also, I have a strong suspicion that the exit polls were manipulated to send out confusing signals even before the results are declared," said Deb.
Trinamool Congress candidate from Khardah, said the exit poll results only confirmed what has always been predicted. "This was perhaps the first free and fair elections in the state, made possible by Mamata Banerjee's courageous leadership and EC's strict vigilance. So far, people couldn't vote out of fear but it was different this time. Ground realities point to a strong urge for change which the exit polls have now confirmed. I don't think they were incorrect or manipulated," argued the Ficci secretary general.
Television channels and survey agencies were at liberty to broadcast their 'poll results', but it from Ballygunge, felt the exit polls compromised on the principles of democracy. "The Supreme Court and the EC don't allow these polls while the elections are on. This is an attempt to pre-empt the people's verdict which is uncalled for. Why be impatient when the results are going to be out in another 48 hours?" asked Halim.
So many channels and agencies couldn't go wrong, said Trinamool candidate Sovondeb Chatterjee. "Most exit polls have forecast more than 200 seats for the alliance and we are confident of reaching the mark. I believe the exit polls are predicting a true picture. The winds of change have been blowing strongly and the polls confirm that," said Chatterjee.
The people's mandate was clear and didn't need to be confirmed by exit polls, said Trinamool candidate Madan Mitra. "Our victory is a foregone conclusion. Over the last few weeks, I have travelled across the state. It is easy to gauge the people's mood which is quite evidently in favour of change. The CPM knows that, too, and are making a last desperate attempt to cling on to hope by rubbishing the exit polls," he said.
First Indian woman everester
PTI: Tine Mena, 25, of Arunachal Pradesh, has become the first Indian woman to successfully scale Mt. Everest this season. She reached the top of the world's highest peak , along with her guide Tsering Dorje Sherpa, 32, on May 9.
‘No victory rallies, no alcohol, no sound bytes...’
Ravik Bhattacharya, Hindustan Times , Kolkata, May 12: Trinamool Congress chief and railways minister Mamata Banerjee has outlined a list of dos and don’ts for party workers to rein in unbridled jubilation across West Bengal should the party achieve a landslide victory, as predicted by exit polls, when results are announced on Friday. Party workers have been asked to show restraint and not hold victory rallies without Banerjee’s permission, not consume alcohol, and stay in their respective areas with workers.
Election surveys and exit polls unanimously predicted a clean sweep for Banerjee’s Trinamool in the state. If this happens, it will mark the end of a 34-year-long Left rule, the longest by any democratically elected Marxist government anywhere in the world.
Banerjee is keen on sending a message that discipline is not dispensable, no matter how big the victory — a few exit polls predicted two-thirds and even three-fourths majority for her party in the 294-seat assembly.
“Her directions are clear, we want the day to pass off peacefully. Our leader has specified our duties and restrictions for that day. Action will be taken against anybody who violates the directive,” said Jyotipriyo Mullick, party observer for North 24 Parganas.
Party workers have also been asked to desist from rushing to Banerjee’s residence in south Kolkata’s Kalighat area, or to television studios to give interviews, without permission.
“After the results are declared no leader should go home or rush to Kalighat. They would have to stay in their respective areas along with workers till the wee hours. This applies to candidates too,” said Mullick.
Banerjee’s office has forwarded the restrictions to all district leaders and candidates, fearing the Left might try to instigate its workers and create a negative impression in the minds of the people from the very first day. If any of our workers get drunk and celebrate, they would attract severe action,” said a party leader.
Trinamool hopes to make a dent in CPM fort
Madhuparna Das, IE, May 10 , Midnapore:Two years ago, Mamata Banerjee created a sort of history after the Trinamool got a lead in the Midnapore assembly segment in 2009 Parliamentary election. Though the CPI candidate Prabodh Panda finally defeated Trinamool candidate Dipak Ghosh in Midnapore Parliamentary constituency by 48,000 votes, it was the first time the Opposition could leave its mark. This lead (of 2,800 votes) in the Midnapore assembly segment was no mean achievement for Trinamool as it started the erosion of the Left’s votebank which became further clear during the municipality elections in 2010 in which the Trinamool captured 10 of 24 wards in Midnapore town while the Congress got 4 and the Left Front got 9 wards.
Emboldened by the result of two previous elections in Midnapore, Trinamool candidate Mrigen Maity, the party’s district president, joined the poll fray with the hope that in the Junglemahal, where the Left is expected to get almost all the seats, he would manage to have at least one seat—-Midnapore.
Maity, who was the president of the TMC-backed workers’ union — State Government Employee’s Federation - for 20 years, became influential after he proposed Mamata to spread the influence of the party in Junglemahal. Maity is also the TMC man who introduced Chhatradhar Mahato to senior party leaders. However, after Chhatradhar’s decision to contest in the election, Maity was criticised in the party.
“I introduced Chhatradhar to Mamata Banerjee and he joined our party in 2007. He was a very powerful tribal leader and he appeared to me as the right man through whom we would be able to spread our organisation in Lalgarh. Later, when he started spearheading the Lalgarh movement, though he was not officially a party member we supported their cause. But after some time, Chhatradhar developed an ideological shift and became completely detached from our party,” said Maity.
“I introduced Chhatradhar to Mamata Banerjee and he joined our party in 2007. He was a very powerful tribal leader and he appeared to me as the right man through whom we would be able to spread our organisation in Lalgarh. Later, when he started spearheading the Lalgarh movement, though he was not officially a party member we supported their cause. But after some time, Chhatradhar developed an ideological shift and became completely detached from our party,” said Maity.
“I have undergone the trauma of being evicted from home and village. In Midnapore assembly constituency, there are thousands of villagers who are still homeless and they are living away from their own place. My aim is to restore peace in the area, so that the displaced people can come back,” said Maity.
The Left Front has fielded Santosh Rana of CPI in Midnapore constituency against Maity. Rana is the sitting MLA in Midnapore. Rana, the secretary of the CPI district committee, said, “The Trinamool would never be able to make any dent in any of the assembly segments in the district. Our main agenda is peace in Junglemahal by uprooting TMC-Maoists alliance.” In 2006 assembly election, Rana had a lead of 57,000 votes in Midnapore assembly constituency.
TMC elated, LF calls it a gimmick
TNN, May 12, KOLKATA: The exit poll results evoked sharp reactions from both sides of the political divide. While the Left Front dismissed them as mere "gimmick and an attempt in vain to demoralize their workers", the Congress-Trinamool alliance hailed it as a confirmation of the fact that a "change" was imminent.
Most surveys done by private TV channels predicted a landslide victory for the Trinamool-Congress alliance, with one pegging the number of Left seats at just 60. CPM veteran Rabin Deb claimed that the exit polls were manipulated. "They serve no purpose other than confusing voters. This time, they are clearly aimed at breaking the morale of our workers who have been bravely fighting the Trinamool Congress. Exit poll results have never been correct for West Bengal and this time it won't be any different. Also, I have a strong suspicion that the exit polls were manipulated to send out confusing signals even before the results are declared," said Deb.
Trinamool Congress candidate from Khardah, said the exit poll results only confirmed what has always been predicted. "This was perhaps the first free and fair elections in the state, made possible by Mamata Banerjee's courageous leadership and EC's strict vigilance. So far, people couldn't vote out of fear but it was different this time. Ground realities point to a strong urge for change which the exit polls have now confirmed. I don't think they were incorrect or manipulated," argued the Ficci secretary general.
Television channels and survey agencies were at liberty to broadcast their 'poll results', but it from Ballygunge, felt the exit polls compromised on the principles of democracy. "The Supreme Court and the EC don't allow these polls while the elections are on. This is an attempt to pre-empt the people's verdict which is uncalled for. Why be impatient when the results are going to be out in another 48 hours?" asked Halim.
So many channels and agencies couldn't go wrong, said Trinamool candidate Sovondeb Chatterjee. "Most exit polls have forecast more than 200 seats for the alliance and we are confident of reaching the mark. I believe the exit polls are predicting a true picture. The winds of change have been blowing strongly and the polls confirm that," said Chatterjee.
The people's mandate was clear and didn't need to be confirmed by exit polls, said Trinamool candidate Madan Mitra. "Our victory is a foregone conclusion. Over the last few weeks, I have travelled across the state. It is easy to gauge the people's mood which is quite evidently in favour of change. The CPM knows that, too, and are making a last desperate attempt to cling on to hope by rubbishing the exit polls," he said.
First Indian woman everester
PTI: Tine Mena, 25, of Arunachal Pradesh, has become the first Indian woman to successfully scale Mt. Everest this season. She reached the top of the world's highest peak , along with her guide Tsering Dorje Sherpa, 32, on May 9.
‘No victory rallies, no alcohol, no sound bytes...’
Ravik Bhattacharya, Hindustan Times , Kolkata, May 12: Trinamool Congress chief and railways minister Mamata Banerjee has outlined a list of dos and don’ts for party workers to rein in unbridled jubilation across West Bengal should the party achieve a landslide victory, as predicted by exit polls, when results are announced on Friday. Party workers have been asked to show restraint and not hold victory rallies without Banerjee’s permission, not consume alcohol, and stay in their respective areas with workers.
Election surveys and exit polls unanimously predicted a clean sweep for Banerjee’s Trinamool in the state. If this happens, it will mark the end of a 34-year-long Left rule, the longest by any democratically elected Marxist government anywhere in the world.
Banerjee is keen on sending a message that discipline is not dispensable, no matter how big the victory — a few exit polls predicted two-thirds and even three-fourths majority for her party in the 294-seat assembly.
“Her directions are clear, we want the day to pass off peacefully. Our leader has specified our duties and restrictions for that day. Action will be taken against anybody who violates the directive,” said Jyotipriyo Mullick, party observer for North 24 Parganas.
Party workers have also been asked to desist from rushing to Banerjee’s residence in south Kolkata’s Kalighat area, or to television studios to give interviews, without permission.
“After the results are declared no leader should go home or rush to Kalighat. They would have to stay in their respective areas along with workers till the wee hours. This applies to candidates too,” said Mullick.
Banerjee’s office has forwarded the restrictions to all district leaders and candidates, fearing the Left might try to instigate its workers and create a negative impression in the minds of the people from the very first day. If any of our workers get drunk and celebrate, they would attract severe action,” said a party leader.
No comments:
Post a Comment