Mamata wakes up to virtue of silence - Chief minister refrains from making political statements in public in troubled times

Arnab Ganguly, TT, Calcutta, Oct. 7: Silence is golden, Mamata Banerjee seems to have learnt, even if only for 42 days.

The chief minister has not made a political comment in public in this time.

“This is unthinkable. I cannot recollect a similar phase in Mamata’s career,” said a senior Trinamul minister, a close aide of Mamata for over three decades.

Those who have known her for years said Mamata loves to talk — subject no bar. From healthy lifestyle tips to dangers posed by the CPM (lately, the BJP), she holds forth without invitation.

Sources close to her said she continues to open up in her inner circle as always, but has stopped talking about political issues in public.

Her prolonged silence has not gone unnoticed by her opponents. State BJP president Rahul Sinha wondered at the reasons for her reticence.

“I want to question her silence. Mukhya mantri mouno keno (Why is the chief minister silent)? She must issue a statement to the people and clear her stand on the Burdwan blasts,” Sinha said.

The chief minister has been going through trying times as for the first time questions have been raised over her personal probity in connection with the Saradha scam. After the Burdwan blast, which has exposed supposed terror modules operating in Bengal, more questions have cropped up over the administration’s role amid allegations of a cover-up.

The sudden change in public interaction, according to the chief minister’s close aides, could be a reflection of her mood. “In her entire career, Didi has not been in such a prolonged phase of silence despite big incidents taking place in the state. We are also waiting to hear from her,” said a Trinamul leader.

Mamata’s last political meeting was on August 28, the foundation day of the Trinamul Chhatra Parishad, where she assured support to the CBI in the Saradha probe.

Not only is she not talking herself, she has instructed senior government officials not to speak without her permission. State secretariat sources said the director-general of police, G.M.P. Reddy, drew flak from the chief minister for speaking to the media on the Burdwan blast.

Mamata’s reticence has spread to her Facebook posts as well. In September and October, she made 20 posts, of which none has any political connotations.

A psychologist said a person most comfortable when in full control of a situation could go into a shell when driven into a corner.

“If a situation is not to their liking, they will try to ignore it. During such times, the person would look for other options to unwind while constantly trying to figure out a solution,” said the psychologist.

Sources close to the chief minister spotted some other changes in the pattern she usually follows. “For the past few years, she had been attending Lakshmi Puja at Uttam Kumar’s home and visited some other people close to her on that day. This time, she did not do so,” said a source.

A section in the party feels Mamata is doing the right thing by keeping mum, citing the examples of the Park Street and Katwa rape cases.

“She must have learnt that it is better to remain silent during times of crisis. She can’t forget how the ‘sajano ghatana (fabricated incident)’ comment after the Park Street incident embarrassed her and the party,” said a minister.

Some of Mamata’s close aides said another reason for her silence was the onset of the festive season.

“She will start attending office from tomorrow. You never know, she might open up — that too with a bang,” a senior government official said.