In north industry zone, friends-turned-foes spark revival dreams

Barrackpore/Noapara/Khardah: Perhaps no other political figure encapsulates the shifting sands of the intense turf battle within the Barrackpore industrial quagmire as former MP Arjun Singh. Having traversed between Trinamool and BJP multiple times since 2019, Singh — who recently lost the 2024 LS polls — is now contesting the Noapara Assembly seat on a BJP ticket. Singh remains "200%" confident, dismissing rivals as "non-serious". "The people are looking for a change," he claimed.In a calculated counter-move, Trinamool has fielded youth leader Trinankur Bhattacharya, dropping veteran Manju Basu to refresh the party's image. Bhattacharya has framed the contest as a "moral crusade" against what he terms "Goonda Raj", directly labeling Singh a "murder accused".The high-stakes drama continues in Bhatpara and Jagatdal. Both Trinamool and Congress are campaigning on a platform of "liberation", promising a regime free from the intimidation, violence, and political opportunism that have long plagued these industrial wards. In Bhatpara, BJP's Pawan Kumar Singh — son of Arjun Singh — is squaring off against Trinamool's Amit Gupta; in Jagatdal, a battle has emerged between former Kolkata Police commissioner Rajesh Kumar (BJP) and incumbent Somnath Shyam (Trinamool). In Barrackpore proper, director-turned-politician Raj Chakraborty (TMC) is seeking a second term by projecting a vision of urban modernization. Challenging him is the BJP's Koustav Bagchi, whose campaign is aggressively centered on his "local boy" status."My opponent has made sweeping promises — everything short of taking voters to the moon," Chakraborty remarked during campaign. Chakraborty's "Barrackpore Master Plan" focuses on solving waterlogging caused by construction of Kalyani Expressway and mitigating methane gas emissions from local dumping grounds. He has also pledged to create an "alternative support system" for jute mill workers during the industry's frequent lockouts.Bagchi aims to tap into anti-incumbency sentiments, claiming voters are "fed up" with "celebrity absenteeism". "It was five years ago when voters saw Chakraborty for the first and last time," he said. Khardah offers a startling contrast to the strong-arm culture. Historically an intellectual bastion, Khardah has consistently elected finance ministers from both Left and TMC, including Asim Dasgupta and Amit Mitra. Continuing this tradition, TMC has fielded veteran journalist Devdeep Purohit, a postgraduate from Delhi School of Economics. Purohit, who says he feels "welcomed" by TMC's robust organization, is focused on a local manifesto and his personal rapport with the community. "I represent none other than CM Mamata Banerjee. The feedback from voters has been heartening," he said. Despite the political maneuvering, the backdrop remains grim. Residents say over 1,00,000 industrial jobs have been lost in this belt in the past two decades. The socio-political fabric has frayed as well. "The mills, where people of different ethnicities once worked together, are now divided along narrow lines," said Ranjan Singh, a resident of Jagatdal.(Inputs from Priyanka Dasgupta)
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