Out on bail, dreaded city dons pad up to play poll managers

KOLKATA: People who started their "career" as newspaper vendors and drivers and popcorn sellers are keeping cops and central forces on their toes and may end up swinging the way "you vote" this Thursday.

Meet former popcorn seller Ravi Naskar, his brother and paper vendor Ravi Naskar and a don's former driver, Hath-Kata Dilip, just three of the faces who have graduated to bigger crimes and are now considered indispensable by their political masters for "managing" elections in the city. And, just if you are wondering, all three -and most others of their ilk -share another bond: they started their political career under the CPM umbrella but are now firmly in the Trinamool camp.

All these men have impressive CVs that the city's senior officials know by heart. The elder of the Naskar brothers, Ravi, for instance, is "credited" with the mayhem unleashed in the KC-FD Block zone in Salt Lake during last year's civic poll. And Dilip's help was sought by none other than central Kolkata don Gopal Tiwari, who is now in jail after being accused of shooting a Kolkata Police constable during the KMC polls.

Cops are now keeping their fingers crossed -and they advise citizens to do the same -as many of these men are out on bail and have the potential to up set the best-laid plans of the central forces and the Election Commission. North and central Kolkata, which vote on Thursday , are home to 21 of the top 30 criminals who, officials say , double up as "poll managers". Ravi's example is telling. A popcorn seller at Alochha ya cinema, he then started driving a taxi and ended up in the real estate trade as a promoter's agent. He also joined the red flag and, after the change of government, now finds himself as the right-hand man of a Beliaghata Trinamool councillor.

His brother, Raju, eight cases against him, which include rioting, murder, attempt to murder and being involved in unauthorised construction, says a detective department official.

Lalbazar, acting under the EC's orders, has taken several measures to ensure peace on election day , claim senior officers. But its failure to keep these men behind bars for too long despite arresting most of them may create problems for voters. Cops claim they have gone by the book and followed the legal procedures in letter. Opposition politicians agree; their only grouse: cops should have followed the procedures in spirit.

A look at some of the recent developments bears out their concerns. Cossipore Trinamool Congress leader Swapan Chakraborty was arrested by the anti-rowdy section of the detective department with much fanfare just more than a week ago. But the police submissions in court were so weak that he walked out in less than two weeks. He is the same man accused of orchestrating the Cossipore Uddanbati violence two days prior to the KMC polls last year.

It was the same ARS that arrested Hath-Kata Dilip for harbouring central Kolkata don Gopal Tewari when he was on the run after a cop was shot at Girish Park on the same day . He, too, is now out on bail. So are Loha Pappu and Sona Pappu of Tiljala, accused in the Bijon Setu shootout.

Officially, however, cops say they have done everything to ensure free and fair polls."We have put each such person under 24-hour survellience," joint CP (headquarters) Supratim Sarkar said.