The Assembly polls in West Bengal this year are witnessing a record number of violent incidents

More than 100 years ago, political leader and social reformer Gopal Krishna Gokhale had said: “What Bengal thinks today, India thinks tomorrow.” It must have rung true for the “Aamaar shonaar Bangla” of that time and age; sadly, that is no longer the case. The post-Independence Bengal is known more because of its trade unionism, impromptu strikes and election violence, at least since the 1960s. The ongoing Assembly elections in the State are no exception. Of the crucial eight-phase election, the three phases that have already been completed have had their share of bloody arson, mob violence, exploding crude bombs, threats to rival politicians and their followers and brandishing of lathis and iron rods. Quite unlike other States and Union Territories in the country, West Bengal has always reported blood, gore and violence in its elections, be it for a panchayat or Parliament. In the latest round of voting, five candidates, including two women, were assaulted, while clashes between rival political groups during the polling were also reported. The balance of hooliganism seems to be tilted evenly — of the five people arrested for their alleged involvement in the assault of a female candidate, three belonged to the TMC and two to the BJP.

Several candidates in the poll fray have been attacked. There were also allegations of attacks on polling agents in certain constituencies. Along predictable lines, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee alleged the misuse of Central forces deployed on election duty, and the BJP charged the “TMC goons” with running amok and trying to influence the election outcome by intimidating voters. However, what is notably interesting is that the violence surprised neither the citizens nor political pundits. Everybody, it would appear, was in fact waiting for the violence to be unleashed, especially since in this election a resurgent BJP has thrown a direct challenge to the might of Mamata, who herself is a street fighter. The stakes of the Congress and the Left may be considered somewhat limited, but the latter — having ruled the State with an iron hand for more than three decades before surrendering to a feisty Mamata — itself is an old hand in managing violence during successive elections. In toto, democracy in the State can’t be termed healthy by any stretch of imagination, which is a sad thing. One can only hope that the upcoming poll phases will witness less of violence and more of the dance of democracy.