Why have Bengal’s Panchayat polls turned violent?

Taking stock of the situation, state Governor CV Ananda Bose visited various districts to meet people. He told the media: “It should cause concern to all of us. This is the most sacred day for democracy… Elections must be through ballots and not bullets.”

Violent clashes have been reported across West Bengal ever since the state government announced the date for Panchayat polls on June 9. As a result, the Calcutta High Court on Thursday (July 6) ordered the deployment of Central forces across the state for 10 days after the declaration of the election result on July 11 “to ensure the safety of people and elected Panchayat members”.

Where is the current situation in West Bengal?

As the polling commenced at 7 am on Saturday, three TMC workers were allegedly killed in separate incidents in Nadia, Murshidabad and Malda districts. A BJP polling agent was allegedly killed in Cooch Behar. A CPI(M) worker, who was severely injured last evening in East Burdwan district, succumbed to his wounds in a hospital this morning.

Meanwhile, a Congress supporter was reportedly killed in Murshidabad’s Nowda while he was going to cast his vote. News agency PTI also reported that two children sustained injuries in a blast in South 24 Parganas district on Saturday. The incident took place when the victims picked up a crude bomb from the roadside mistaking it to be a ball, officials said.

According to BSF’s Chief Public Relations Officer, 59,000 personnel of the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) and other State Armed Police Forces have been deployed at sensitive polling booths while the rest of the troops of CAPF & SAP along with local state police have been given the responsibility of security at the remaining polling booths.

What is the election for?

The Panchayati Raj system has three levels: Gram Panchayat (village level), Mandal Parishad or Block Samiti or Panchayat Samiti (block level), and Zila Parishad (district level). West Bengal has 3,317 gram panchayats and a total of 63,283 panchayat seats. The number of village panchayat election centres is 58,594.

What is the reason behind the violence?

Tensions have been simmering ever since the state government declared the date for conducting Panchayat polls. The Opposition openly opposed the announcement, claiming that 60,000 candidates for the elections didn’t have enough days to file nominations. In the following days, violent incidents broke out in a number of places across the state.

The BJP, the Left and the Congress have accused the TMC of preventing their candidates from filing nominations. The TMC, on the other hand, claimed innocence and asked party workers to ensure violence-free violence. However, clashes continued to be reported in West Bengal, even on the day of voting.

What was the situation during the last Panchayat polls?

In 2018, TMC won more than 95% of gram panchayats, of which 34% of the seats were uncontested, a record in the history of Bengal Panchayat polls. Then too, the Opposition had alleged they were not allowed to submit nominations. The TMC had faced criticism over allegations of large-scale violence and poll rigging. The role of the police was also questioned.

The following year, in 2019, the ruling party’s performance in the Lok Sabha elections took a hit, with the BJP winning 18 parliamentary constituencies — its best-ever Lok Sabha performance in West Bengal.

After the State Assembly elections in 2021, the TMC again faced allegations of perpetrating violence against BJP workers and the cases went to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) following the Calcutta High Court’s directions.

Why are the Panchayat polls crucial?

Ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha election, the Panchayat polls are a litmus test for all major political camps — the Trinamool Congress, the BJP, and the Left-Congress alliance.

In the 2021 Assembly Elections, the TMC returned to power with a thumping majority despite a high-decibel campaign by the BJP spearheaded by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah. However, since then, there have been massive allegations of corruption against the ruling party.

TMC leaders have been arrested in the SSC scam case and the coal smuggling and cattle smuggling cases. The CBI has also begun a probe into the alleged municipal recruitment scam. Abhishek Banerjee, a senior TMC leader, is under the CBI scanner regarding the coal pilferage case and the SSC scam. The politically significant Rajbanshi community took out a protest rally in April after the death of a 17-year-old girl who had been allegedly raped.

In this context, the result of the Panchayat polls will be an important indicator to tell which way the political wind in Bengal is blowing.