Kolkata Confidential

Speculations galore
The name of DG,Armed Police,Partha Bhattacharya,is doing the rounds for the post of DGP as the present incumbent Bhupinder Singh retires at the end of this month. Earlier it was Noparajit Mukherjee,DGP,IB,who was the front-runner among the six DGPs in the race for the top post. He reportedly had the blessings of chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee. But following Bhattacharya’s meeting with Home department top brass at Writers’ Building last week,tongues began wagging on the possibility of his snagging the prize post. The argument is that though Bhattacharya has got only six months to retire,SN Sarker,who was DG before Bhupinder Singh,0 remained in the post for only three months. The other factor that is in Bhattacharya’s favour is that he is a relative of the CM.

Official revenge?
About a month ago,the Minister for Health and Family Welfare Surya Kanta Mishra,lamented at a public rally in Midnapore that the party has lost its grip over the police since its poll debacles began. “The police no longer listens to us,” he had said. “If we tell them to do something and the policeman is standing,he will sit down and hang up the phone.” Little did Mishra — one of the most senior cabinet members of the state government who reportedly looks after the police on the party’s behalf — know that he himself will have a taste of police highhandedness: In a breach of protocol he had to submit to a thorough security check at a city hotel,the venue of a seminar also attended by Union Minister for Health Ghulam Navi Azad. The security personnel later said they were unaware of his identity.

Extra work
The KMC building,now run by the TMC,was bubbling with activities on August 9,when Mamata Banerjee was holding her rally in Lalgarh. Though most officials,including the Members of Mayor-in-Council were present,the mood was that of a holiday. Firhad (Bobby) Hakim,Mayor-in-Council (Roads and Engineering) was,however,conspicuous by his absence. Bobby,known as a close aide of Didi,had accompanied her to Lalgarh. As expected,not all TMC rank-holders are happy with his position within the party. Asked why he had not gone to Lalgarh,a senior MMiC said,“See,Bobby has no work besides flattering Didi and running behind her. We are the ones who have to work hard to keep up the party’s image.”

Safety first
The CPM state secretary,Biman Bose,recently said was willing to visit Mamata Banerjee’s Kalighat residence during her illness. But he dropped the idea since he was unsure of how he would be received. “I do not know whether she will accept it,” Bose had said. Party insiders maintain the intended trip was Bimanda’s little joke. Because “Biman Bose believed that she stayed home mainly to avoid controversy following her Lalgarh statement on Azad,” said one of them. Is Didi on to that joke? Then Bose has every reason to be apprehensive.