Bhawanipore is not just another assembly seat. It gives you a taste of everything Calcutta has to offer, from the steaks (with a beautiful fried egg on top), booze, hotels and clubs at the centre of town to the poverty of the slums here. There are high rises, recently built and buildings that go back to the British, now decaying. The area also has a significant non-Bengali population, most notably the affluent Marwari community, Punjabis, Gujratis and many immigrant workers from Bihar and Uttar Pradesh. According to a report in The Telegraph, these constitute over one-third of voters.
The seat, which votes on 30 April, is also Mamata Banerjee’s constituency. Unsurprisingly, the chief minister is the front-runner in this Trinamool Congress (TMC) stronghold. Till recently, such was her confidence, that she barely even campaigned here .However, last Sunday, she spent over two hours here, speaking to voters.
Clearly, the fight is on in Bhawanipore.
A Most Visible Opposition
On the streets near Mamata Banerjee’s home on Harish Chatterjee street, posters of the Congress’ candidate Deepa Dasmunshi rival those of Mamata. On the ground, the jot (CPI(M)-Congress alliance) is working well. CPI(M) workers are drinking chai with their Congress counterparts, discussing how Deepa di‘s posters have been torn down from in front of the Congress office by party workers.
Deepa Dasmunshi, an old rival of the chief minister’s from her Congress days and wifer of veteran Congress leader Priyaranjan Dasmunshi, is working hard to get votes, even campaigning door to door.
Also visible is the BJP’s chief ministerial candidate, Chandra Bose. He is the grand-nephew of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, whose home is in the area. The party has put in some effort into the campaign, bringing out celebs like Paresh Rawal and Hema Malini to campaign in Calcutta. If the Marawari population, along with some of the immigrant communities moves to the BJP, they could certainly dent the TMC’s voteshare.
The effect of the recent Kolkata flyover collapse and the Narada News sting are also palpable in the area. Alam, an Uber driver who lives near Kalighat is angry at the current government and is voting for the Jot.
There are people building illegal houses who belong the TMC syndicate. Crime is on the rise. Why should I vote for TMC again?Mohd. Alam, Resident, Kalighat
A Divided Opposition Mamata’s Guarantee?
In the 2011 Assembly elections, TMC swept the seat with a 53,000 vote lead over their nearest competitor, the CPI(M). In the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, the BJP rose to second place. Despite accusations of widespread rigging, the BJP managed two out of seven Municipal Corporation seats from the area in the local body elections just last year.
Urban Bengal is where issues of corruption, employment and a stagnant economy have most resonance. It’s no surprise that the opposition is getting some traction here. But Mamata is still the front runner. The TMC organisation here is strong, with roots among the poor, immigrants and minorities. Also, and perhaps more importantly, this is one of the few areas where the Opposition to Mamata is divided. Both the Congress-CPI(M) alliance and the BJP have a chance at a significant number of votes. In a first past the post system, this makes a TMC victory more likely.
The margin of victory though, will be a barometer for the chief ministers popularity in Calcutta, if not all of West Bengal.
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