Train cancelled, TMC takes buses for big Delhi protest, worried about time, ‘BJP-ruled UP’

The journey from Kolkata to Delhi is over 1,500 km by road. The 50-odd private buses hurriedly arranged by the TMC to carry a caravan of around 2,500 people – the party says it is 5,000 – would take at least two-and-a-half days to cover the distance. This means only the top leaders, including MPs, ministers and TMC all-India general secretary and No. 2 Abhishek Banerjee, who have left or are leaving for Delhi either by the Rajdhani or flights, might make it to the Raj Ghat on Gandhi Jayanti.

MGNREGA job card holders and others affected by alleged blocking of funds by the central government gather at Netaji Indoor Stadium, a day before leaving for Delhi to take part in a protest of TMC, in Kolkata, Saturday, Sept. 30, 2023. (Express Photo by Partha Paul)

The next day, by which time the others will reach, the TMC has planned a grand protest at Jantar Mantar. A delegation would try to meet Union Rural Development Minister Giriraj Singh.

From Saturday morning, the Netaji Indoor Stadium in Kolkata where those selected for the journey were assembled was buzzing. The protesters had started gathering Friday, in anticipation of taking the train, and sat ready besides their packed bags, counting the hours. The first of the private buses hired by the TMC arrived at 9.30 am, the second at 11.30 am. By evening, the buses had left with those assembled at the stadium, while others had set off from districts.

Marking this, the TMC posted: “Despite the @BJP4India-led Central Government’s refusal to provide the promised special train, our determination remains unshaken. Buses are now on their way to the capital, and we shall ensure that justice prevails!”

Some TMC leaders, like MPs Derek O’Brien and Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar, claimed some flights their leaders were meant to take had also got cancelled.

Earlier, Madan Shaw, the 62-year-old driver of the first bus to arrive at the Kolkata stadium, calculated that the journey would not take less than 60 hours. “We have to make many stops for food and for toilet breaks. There will be a night halt. Maybe a dhaba will be arranged,” the veteran of the Kolkata-Delhi route said, waiting beside the bus with a helper.

Shaw had just finished a long trip, so was looking forward to the halts. “It was just last evening when my owner told me that I have to be here. I dropped passengers from Puri at Mathurapur at 5 am. Then I rushed to the stadium. I just got an hour’s sleep (on the bus).”

While it was just a job for the tourist bus driver from Barasat in North 24 Parganas, Shaw was aware of the politics at play. “I just pray that the police from other states, especially BJP-ruled states, do not create hassles for us,” he said, joking: “The police there have longer lathis.”

They were yet to get the exact schedule, Shah added, but Jharkhand and Bihar would be on the route besides Uttar Pradesh. “I am told that I will shortly get the permit for the three states to Delhi,” Shaw said.

Inside the stadium, the biggest source of anxiety was charging mobile phones. “We don’t know when the next stop will be. So we are all charging our phones,” said Dharam Mahali, 34, a TMC worker and MNREGS card holder from Kalchini in North Bengal, who will be visiting Delhi for the first time.

He admitted that not going on a train was a setback. “It would have been a smooth journey. But the Railways did not give permission.”

Muhammed Sahabuddin, an MNREGS card holder from Jalpaiguri in North Bengal, was among those anxious about crossing UP. “We are worried about trouble when we cross the BJP-ruled state. Who knows what plans they have for us? Who knows what BJP workers and the police in that state will do to us? They (the BJP government) did not allow us even a train,” Sahabuddin said, adding that he was confident the TMC leaders would act if there was any trouble.

Reshmina Bibi (34), an MNREGS card holder from Mayureshwar, Birbhum, also going to Delhi for the first time, had more practical concerns. “We are a team of 10 from Mayureshwar. A train would have been better. It is secure and comfortable, has toilets. I have a five-year-old boy with me,” she worried.

As for the arrangements, those gathered at the Netaji Indoor Stadium had no complaints. “The party is taking care of us, serving breakfast, lunch and dinner. For lunch and dinner, we had curry and rice. I know our party will also take care of us through the journey and back,” said Deb Kumar Bhuiyan, an MNREGS worker and TMC member from Jamuria in Paschim Burdwan.

A senior TMC leader said they had planned several halts. “The passengers will be given necessary refreshments and food.”