Calcutta Corner

Desperate Didi

When West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee travelled to New Delhi earlier this week on the invitation of Congress President Sonia Ghandhi to attend the 125th birth anniversary of Jawaharlal Nehru the buzz in Calcutta was that once again Mamata and Sonia will enter into an alliance and fight the 2016 Assembly elections together to keep the BJP out of Bengal. While the very possibility was ridiculed by critics who pointed out how time and again Mamata has pulled the plug on such alliances, including the high profile pullout from the UPA II government as late as 2012, others argued that in politics such tie-ups were nothing new. Mamata herself is reported to have nurtured such hopes at a time when not only is the BJP breathing down her neck in the state but when she and many of her party colleagues are feeling the heat from central investigating agencies NIA and CBI who are probing the Burdwan blasts and the Saradha chit fund cases respectively. In fact, so eager was Mamata to accept the invitation that when her Air India flight was delayed, she hopped onto the next available Indigo flight, even allegedly claiming that the AI delay was a central ploy to sabotage her trip. Speculation was rife whether Mamata would be able to swing an alliance not just with Congress but even a “Third Secular Front” comprising Congress, the Left and other interested parties. But right now, no one seems to be that interested. Perhaps they want to first see how and where the chit fund and the bomb blast cases finally end.

Scam Summons

The latest in the chit fund scam is that transport minister Madan Mitra has been asked by the CBI to report to its office in Salt Lake for questioning. He has however claimed that he is unwell and is undergoing medical tests. The CBI has announced that it will have his doctor’s claims corroborated by the agency’s doctors from New Delhi and verify whether there are any discrepancies. Another top Trinamool leader to have received a summons from CBI is Srinjoy Bose. Congress leader Somen Mitra, who had joined Trinamool for a few years only to return to Congress too is reportedly on CBI’s list of summons. Interestingly Somen was one of the first to demand a probe into the chit funds in Bengal. In 2009, he had written a letter to the then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh asking him to take action and crack down on the numerous chit fund companies that had burgeoned through the state. According to reports, however, he supposedly knew about the dealings between football club East Bengal and Saradha. Only time will tell.

Blast Mastermind

The latest in the NIA probe into the Burdwan blast is that Sajid, reportedly the mastermind behind a series of bomb blasts linked to the incident, has been arrested from Calcutta. His arrest and interrogation is expected to lead to the doors of terror operatives in the state and get to the root of the problem.

Podotyag Chai

Meanwhile, in the Jadavpur University, demand for the Vice Chancellor's resignation continues apace, with the man very much ensconced in his position. A poster of his face has now been put up in front of the University gate with the words “Podotyag chai” (We demand your resignation) written across it.

Writing on the Wall

Eki sorkar?
Ekey ki shotti dorkar?

(What kind of a government is this?...Do we really need it?)