Mamata plays Ghani chord against tie-up

TT, Malda, April 4: Trinamul chief Mamata Banerjee today played the Ghani Khan card to woo voters of Malda district at three public meetings organised in support of party’s candidates. 

Mamata, who addressed the first meeting at Kaliachak around 28km from Malda town this afternoon, said Congress leaders, including Abu Hasem Khan Chowdhury, were “sitting on CPM’s lap”.

Abu Hasem, the MP of Malda South, is the brother of A.B.A. Ghani Khan Chowdhury who affectionately was called “Barkatda” by the people of Malda.

Mamata too mentioned Barkatda. 

“Barkatda always used to say that the CPM should be thrown into the Bay of Bengal. But now, his descendants are sitting on CPM’s lap. Had Barkatda been alive, he would have shoved these people out. These people have no right to seek votes in the name of Barkatda. He had never surrendered before the CPM but these people are selling Congress’s ideology, flag and even the signboard to the CPM,” Mamata told a gathering of around 15,000 people.

Malda is one of the few places where the Congress still has a support base. 

In this election, two of Ghani Khan’s descendants are in a head-on fight. In Sujapur, Ghani Khan’s brother Abu Naser Khan Chowdhury is the Trinamul candidate and he is pitted against Abu Hasem’s son Isha Khan Chowdhury, who is the alliance-supported candidate of the Congress.  In 2011, Abu Naser had won as the Congress candidate of Sujapur while Isha had won from Baishnabnagar seat. 

In course of her speech, Mamata said: “Barkatda loved Malda and we also love the district. That is why we have fielded his brother Lebuda (Abu Naser’s nickname) in the Sujapur seat. Dalubabu (Abu Hasem), on the other hand, has realised that he could no longer approach people and seek vote in the name of Barkatda and has thus fielded his son in Sujapur. His son would have lost in Baishnabnagar and will also lose in Sujapur,” Mamata said. “It is for such betrayal by the Congress that I had quit the party. Otherwise, I could not have removed the CPM from Bengal.”

Mamata’s plan to play the Ghani Khan card in Malda is nothing but natural, opined political observers. 

“It is an open secret that Malda residents have a sentimental attachment with the name of Ghani Khan Chowdhury. The district is one of the few bastions of the Congress left in the state today. The chief minister has thus taken this strategy in an effort to swing the Congress’ votes in Trinamul’s favour,” an observer said. “Malda is also one of those areas where an undercurrent of dislike of the Left persists in a section of Congress supporters. Mamata intends to capitalise on that.” 

Mamata asked the gathering: “People of Malda, Murshidabad and North Dinajpur districts have always voted for the Congress. You tell me, is there any compatibility between the Congress and the CPM? Yet, these parties have joined hands. Both the parties have resorted to blatant slander against Trinamul. I would like to make it clear that none of these parties will get seats even by forging the alliance. There are some leaders of the Congress in this district and one leader in adjoining Murshidabad who are advocating the alliance for their personal interests.” 

From Kaliachak, the chief minister went to Bhutni in Manikchak to attend another public meeting. The third meeting was held at Chanchal, also in Malda. 

At all three meetings, she went on criticising the Congress and CPM, occasionally referring to the BJP. 

District CPM leaders said Mamata’s strategy of trasjing the alliance would not work. “People here have been deprived of development in the past five years, even though there were two state ministers from the district. Residents have also seen how the law and order situation has deteriorated across Malda and in most of these cases, Trinamul leaders were involved,” Ambar Mitra, the Malda district CPM secretary, said. “Barkatda had always advocated peace and amity. He would have never endorsed such violence perpetrated by Trinamul.”