Civilization has been under the spell of the yellow metal since time immemorial. The myth of the city of gold — El Dorado — refuses to fade away. Politicians — members of the Bharatiya Janata Party are a case in point — are also in the habit of talking of a golden past or, when elections come calling, promising a golden future to the people. So the Union home minister’s vow to turn Bengal into Sonar Bangla within a stipulated time frame is only to be expected in this season of elections. Amit Shah’s contentions about Bengal’s challenges cannot be brushed aside. The flight of capital compounded by years of militant trade unionism as well as political corruption has blighted the prospects of an economic renaissance. Yet Mr Shah’s assurance needs to be taken with a pinch of salt: the BJP’s record of running India in the last six years is far from glittering. Under Narendra Modi’s benevolent vision, the nation’s slide on critical parameters has been steep and, hence, worrying. India clocked its highest ever unemployment rate with the BJP at the helm; per capita income is expected to fall even below that of Bangladesh; the deepening agrarian crisis, manifest in the farmers’ protests, remains unresolved; radical experimentation in the name of reform — the demonetization exercise is a classic example — has decimated the vulnerable segments of the economy. Social strain complements the nation’s economic decline. India’s plural, accommodative spirit has been weakened by a surge in majoritarianism. Equally discernible has been the inertia of critical institutions responsible for keeping an aggressive executive on a leash.

Significantly, the BJP seems eager to replicate its template of division in its attempt to claim Bengal’s political crown. Even though he was evasive about the contentious National Register of Citizens, Mr Shah spoke about the implementation of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, a controversial legislation, which has been spiritedly opposed by large segments of people in Bengal. The dissenting voices did not belong to minorities alone. The BJP’s is also hoping to gain political capital by raking up the issue of minority appeasement, yet another polarizing claim. Its promise to rid Bengal of corruption is a bit rich, given the fact that it has roped in defectors from the Trinamul Congress who are accused in multiple cases of financial irregularity. The BJP is hoping to strike gold in the state, but that need not assure Bengal of a golden future.