Mamata Banerjee on Monday boarded a flight to Agartala to campaign for the February 16 Assembly elections in Tripura within an hour of receiving a D.Litt (honoris causa) from St Xavier’s University in Calcutta.
“She (Bengal chief minister) thinks D.Litt on the day of her visit to Tripura is symbolic,” said a source close to Mamata, who left the Rajarhat campus of the university for the airport.
The programme of around an hour had another positive for the chief minister as governor C.V. Ananda Bose heaped praise on Mamata and bracketed her with political leaders like Winston Churchill and Atal Bihari Vajpayee who made a mark for their literary and artistic pursuits.
“The chief minister was in a good mood.... This afternoon’s developments were positive for her before the trip to Tripura,” said a source.
After landing in Agartala, the chief minister went straight to Mata Tripureswari temple in Udaipur. On Tuesday, she will take part in a roadshow in Agartala and address a public rally.
The battle for Tripura, which has 60 seats, this time is primarily a triangular contest among the BJP, the Left Front-Congress combine and Tipra Motha, a newly-formed regional party.
Although Trinamul has put up candidates in only 28 seats — and most observers think it is in the fray only in a handful of segments, the battle is important for the ruling party in Bengal as it hopes to garner “a decent vote share” as part of its larger plan of having footprints beyond the state of its origin.
Multiple sources in Trinamul said the party would be happy if it could repeat the performance in the civic polls held in November 2021 when Trinamul had emerged as the primary Opposition by bagging 20.2 per cent votes in the Agartala Municipal Corporation and around 24 per cent across the state.
“The presence of Mamata Banerjee can change several things and help bring about a few percentage points in our favour.... We released our manifesto yesterday (Sunday) with the promise of replicating the Bengal model. Today, our leader is here and we expect rich dividends from her visit,” said a Trinamul source.
The fact that the impending battle — in which Trinamul vowed to bring down the BJP government in the northeastern state —was at the top of Mamata’s mind became clear in her acceptance speech and convocation address at the St. Xavier’s University programme.
“This respect gives me the courage to work for the unity of the country... and fight against hunger, poverty, injustice and inequality and also to protect the secular and democratic Constitution of India,” said Mamata.
Calcutta University had conferred D.Litt on Mamata in 2018.
In all electoral battles against the BJP over the years, Trinamul has attacked the “communal politics” of the saffron camp and the “dictatorial attitude” of its leaders. For the battle in Tripura, which the party is calling a vote for change, Trinamul is attacking the BJP’s divisive politics and the absence of democracy from the BJP-ruled state.
While the Trinamul establishment is determined to unseat the BJP government, the Congress has accused Mamata of having a secret tie-up with the BJP.
“The only intention of Trinamul’s entry into Tripura is to divide the anti-BJP votes and ensure another five-year term for the BJP government.... They couldn’t field candidates in all seats and still, they are here. Their plan is exposed,” said Adhit Chowdhury, the president of the Bengal unit of the Congress.
Trinamul’s strategy is that it will contest in winnable seats so that anti-BJP votes are not divided, said a Trinamul source. Trinamul’s leaders in charge of Tripura have also said that they are open to postpoll alliances.
“Wait for Didi’s tomorrow’s programmes during which she will spell out the party’s strategy.... She received a rousing welcome after reaching Agartala and it looks positive for us,” said a Trinamul source.
