The ruling Trinamul’s decision to delay its announcement of its official nominees for the July 8 panchayat polls has triggered large-scale discontent in several districts and prompted some grassroots workers to desert the party.
Sources in the ruling party, however, played down the impact of “discontent and desertion” before adding that the leadership had discounted such a reaction while drawing up their strategy for the rural polls.
Unlike previous years, Trinamul adopted a top-down approach this year. District leaders were told that the final list of nominees, with many new faces among them, would reach them from the party’s national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee’s office in Calcutta.
“The final list will be drawn up from primarily three sources — the suggested names from districts, independent reports based on potential candidates collected by Abhishek’s office and names that cropped up in internal elections during his statewide outreach covering 19 districts,” said a source.
The Trinamul leadership delayed finalising names for rural polls primarily for two reasons. First, the process of deciding on candidates after consulting three sets of names took time. Second, the leadership decided to announce the names late to reduce the possibility of disgruntled workers switching to other parties to contest from their new parties.
“This strategy may have looked fine on paper.... But in reality, many Trinamul workers interested in contesting the panchayat polls didn’t want to wait till the last moment. In several districts, several aspirants, who are not sure of getting the party ticket, are switching to other parties or making moves to contest as Independents,” said a source.
In Birbhum district’s Mayureswar, a Trinamul office became a Congress one. Members of an entire Trinamul unit, including at least 30 top workers, quit to join the Congress.
“Some Trinamul functionaries of Kot village contacted us and expressed their interest to join our party. We got a new party office as well because they converted the Trinamul office into a Congress one,” said Syed Kasafuddoza, the acting Birbhum president of the Congress.
Restlessness among Trinamul aspirants was reported from other south Bengal districts like Hooghly, Howrah, Bankura and the two 24-Parganas.
In Howrah’s Uluberia, Trinamul workers put up posters demanding candidates of their own choice, not that of the leadership.
“Already, 633 party workers have filed nomination papers as Trinamul candidates till Saturday, violating party instruction,” said a Trinamul leader in Calcutta.
“We have reports that several hundred more turned up at different government offices on Monday to file the nomination. All of them are likely to contest as Independents if they don’t become party nominees,” said a senior Trinamul leader in Calcutta.
Amid speculations on who all will feature in the final list, North Dinajpur witnessed a drama at the head post office in Raiganj town on Monday when four Trinamul members of Bindol panchayat located under Raiganj block reached there with party’s flags, festoons and banners and folded them as parcels to send to the address of Kanaialal Agarwala, the district Trinamul chief.
“All of us have worked for the party for years and have not indulged in any corruption. Instead, we were vocal against those who were corrupt. Till date, there is no intimation from the party as to whether we will get tickets. That is why we are quitting Trinamul,” said Mansur Ali, one of the deserters.
“We still respect Mamata Banerjee, and thus, have sent the flags, festoons and banners to the district president via post,” Ali added.
Abdul Karim Choudhury, a veteran politician and the Trinamul MLA of Islampur, North Dinajpur, said on Monday that being the local MLA, he would select candidates in all three tiers of his Assembly constituency.
“Let me make it clear that if any candidate I have selected is not endorsed by the state leadership, I will field him as an Independent,” the MLA said.
In Cooch Behar, Suchismita Debsharma, a zilla parishad member and the district president of the party’s women’s wing, said she would not contest this time. In Alipurduar blocks of Kalchini and Madarihat, a number of Trinamul members of panchayats and panchayat samitis defected to the BJP.
“We face problems finding candidates in several places... If we get good grassroots workers from Trinamul, it’s good for us,” said a BJP source.
Trinamul’s state general secretary Kunal Ghosh did not comment on the discontent and desertion but said the official list would be out in districts starting Tuesday.
A Trinamul source said the discontent was not a matter of concern. “All these problems will be overshadowed once the list is out as our workers will hit the streets to ensure a resounding victory for our nominees. We are not bothered about Independents as winners among them will return to the party,” said a source.