Fear grips Rajarhat ahead of polls

RAJARHAT: Election? Really? The usual drab pollscape of Salt Lake now extends to Rajarhat, too. Barring banners and flags, mostly of the ruling Trinamool Congress, large swathes of Rajarhat are bereft of tell-tale signs of an upcoming election.
About a week before the civic poll, the suburbia seemed ill at ease. Fear and apprehension were palpable among residents and opposition parties.Helplessness, too. That some of the Trinamool candidates belong to land mafia “syndicates” boost the fear factor.
BJP alleged their Ward 27 candidate Soumen Tarafdar was “threatened at gunpoint” to withdraw nomination. BJP’s Bidhannagar mandal sabhapati Manoj Das said, “A group of men visited Soumen’s house. They threatened to kill his child if he did not withdraw his nomination. Next, they drove him to the SDO office. They ordered Soumen to tell the SDO that he was withdrawing willingly.” Soumen obeyed.
Biplab Chakraborty, CPM candidate from Ward 4 in Rajarhat, stayed away from home after filing his nomination. His father Prahlad Chakraborty, 85, was livid while recounting the “fearsome” knock around 11.30 pm on September 18.
“I was about to sleep when there was a loud rattling at the door. I went out to see at least three men and two bikes,” he said.
Two men stood at the door. “They threatened me with dire consequences if my son did not withdraw nomination. They threatened to harm my grand-daughter?” said Prahlad Chakraborty, clinging to the little girl, a Class-IV student.
The next day Biplab Chakraborty, manager at a local pharmaceutical factory, moved out of his home. “But, how long can I stay away from home and work? I am the sole earning member of the family,” he said. He is keeping a low profile.
Ironically, the CPM party office near Biplab’s house still bears the name of Tapas Chatterjee, Rajarhat-Gopalpur municipality chairman of the CPM who defected to the Trinamool.
CPM candidate Arati Mull, too, faced a similar ordeal and had to flee home.
Wards 4 and 5 were traditional strongholds of the CPM. Even as the edifice of the Left Front crumbled across Bengal, this area continued to vote for the Left.
CPM party workers are moving from door to door to canvass for him. “The only question people are asking us if they can go out to vote,” said Tapas Malakar, local CPM leader.
Residents wondered where the police were. Opposition parties complained of “extreme bias” against the police and administration.
Residents alleged groups of bike riders speed through the narrow streets warning them to vote none but the Trinamool. “This is a traditional CPM bastion for decades. So, ‘they’ eye us with suspicion. Biker gangs come every evening and scream threats if we step out to vote,” said a teacher.
A group of men were chatting chorused, “Vote? Vote toh hoye geche (Polls are over).” When prodded, they said, “Don’t you see there’s only party here. Now don’t ask us any more else you will land us in trouble. We have a family, children at home.”
A retired central government employee of Rajarhat was angry. “Earlier, women could go out late at night to call a doctor. Now, nobody dares to step out after dark. We see strangers lurking about or zipping past on bikes. It’s rattling,” he said. None of the residents TOI spoke to agreed to give out their names. Many said if they did not feel safe, they would not go out to vote.
A shop-owner on the fringes of Salt Lake spoke of a buzz gaining momentum as poll day approached. “We hear criminal and musclemen from surrounding areas are already trooping into the neighbourhood. They are being put up at unoccupied apartments or under-construction buildings,” he said.
Amid mounting fear, Rajarhat-Salt Lake residents said they are bracing for violence on poll day.