Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday addressed her first public meeting for the December 19 polls to the Calcutta Municipal Corporation with a diatribe against the BJP and assertions of how every election till 2024 was a stepping stone for the general election that year.

The Trinamul Congress chief issued a moral warning to her party and its candidates, not only against delays or complications in the delivery of civic amenities and services but also against the notorious culture of syndicates (without using the word), to minimise harassment of citizens.

“They (the BJP) cannot stop me with violence and canards. For as long as I am alive, I will protect the civilisation of Bengal, the culture and harmony of the nation… Bengal will show the way. What Bengal can do, nobody can,” said the chief minister, not long after her return from a political visit to Goa.

“Calcutta, the whole of India watches…. No matter how many cities there are, what the people of Calcutta think will make the whole nation think again. That is why, every Calcuttan’s vote is priceless, in encouraging, emboldening me,” Mamata added in her 36-minute address at Phoolbagan.

The speech was peppered with attacks on the divisive ways of the saffron camp and gratitude for how the people of the city and the state rejected the BJP in the Assembly elections recently.

But a large part of her speech was dedicated to what councillors of the metropolis owe the people and how they should conduct themselves accordingly.

“Those who are contesting now, to them I say some things very clearly, for those who will win and work for the people in future…. Your area does not have water supply, the road surface is bad in your lane, the streetlight in your neighbourhood is not working… that is the job of the councillors. Those who cannot deliver, do not become councillors,” she said, to thunderous applause.

The Trinamul chief went on: “I have seen it in my own area, in Bhowanipore. I was passing by ward 73… not recently. Suddenly, some people stopped my car and told me: ‘Didi, our tap’s pipeline has been non-functional, we have been saying this for long, but it has not been fixed’,” she said, referring to the ward in Borough VIII of the Calcutta Municipal Corporation, between Gobindo Bose Lane in the north and Asutosh Mukerjee Road in the south, comprising pockets of Bhowanipore and Kalighat areas.

Mamata replaced Ratan Malakar, a councillor for two decades, in ward 73, and fielded her sister-in-law Kajari Banerjee there this time. Malakar had filed nomination as an Independent, but withdrew it after requests from the top-tier leadership.

“I called up the councillor and said: ‘Hey, you were asked to get that pipe fixed, do I have to do this too? Then what are you there as a councillor for?’ So I did not give him a ticket this time. (Loud cheers) Did not give him a ticket,” said the chief minister. “How many times do people have to see my face for me to get work done? As soon as I get information, I get the work done. I don’t think like that.”

Mamata then broached the rather sensitive subject of syndicates – cartels run with the alleged backing of a section of ruling party leaders that coerce contractors into buying inferior construction material at high prices – that has been a pet peeve for many in urban centres of the state through Trinamul’s decade in power.

“Who will construct a home in your (councillor’s) area, you will not decide that everything has to be bought through you. (Loud applause) A house being constructed in my (councillor’s) area, I will dictate that so much has to be given… this will not happen,” said the chief minister.

“Gradually, all of this has to go online. Entirely, online… all work. Many things have gone online already. Permission for a house, online already…. In future, I want clearances for industry, houses, water supply, lighting, whatever the people need, seek permission online, get it in seven days. This is what I want. (Loud cheers),” she added.

She clarified that she was not doing this to publicly admonish anybody, but to help correct the course.

“If I say anything to anybody, the media says I “scolded” that person. I don’t say things to scold, but to rectify,” said Mamata.

“I get it, that councillors too have a life and have to lead it normally… that I do understand. But what I want is that anywhere, anything untoward happens, the councillor has to rush there first. The councillor has to be the first-responder. (Loud cheers) This is work for the people,” she added. “Whom do people think of as a great leader in this world? Those who understand the people’s needs and their work, love the people.”