Mamata Ministers Sick… Amit FLU Spreads

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By Soumitra Bose

In the most gratuitous occurrence in Kolkata Government, all Ministers are ‘sick’, ‘awfully ill’, ‘totally bedridden’, ‘croaking’, ‘groining’, ‘crying’, ‘not-yet-recovered-from-Amit(Shah) Flu bout/s that are now threatening them, their kith-n-kin, their janitors, their Government Subordinates with Damocle’s Sword falling on them (any moment) straight. Neatly supercilious, snooty, always-nose-up-head-high, perennially proudy, couldn’t-care-less-U-who-asking Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee (she herself projects all that flagrantly) is now at her wit’s end wondering how to wriggle out of the CBI’s Octoppus-like wriggle around her, her kith-n-kin, her ministers, their kith-n-kin, her nephews, nieces, her sellers of paintings, poems, sculptures, masks, curios, jewelry, writers, cartoonists, makers-n-breakers, her officers, their near-n-dear ones, MPs (Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar, Ambica Banerjee, MunMun Sen, Tapas Pal, Arpita Ghose, Sandhya Roy etc).

All of  a sudden, there is Flu every where in Kolkata, entire state for that matter. Reason : BJP StrongMan, National President Amit Shah’s vini, vidi, vici in Kolkata. Kolkatans, West Bengal people of all hues were seen singing paeans for AmitBhai, BJP, NarendraBhai Modi, Rahul Sinha (Bengal BJP Chief) and-who-have-You-in-BJP.

Amit Shah’s meeting venue was packed to more than capacity as he went on : “Aap Pashchim Bangla ke logon ko abhee se jyada meelna chaaheeye. Didi seerf waida keeya, oonhone kooch keeya ? Rajya ko axchche stheetee par le gaye? Doordasha to saamne hee najar aa raha hai. Didi ke Sarkar se Aap Prasanna hain?…” Nahi, unitedly shouted all in singlular chorus. Some shouted – Didi Hatao, Poshchim Bongo Bachao. BJP Ko Vote Do, Poshchim Bongo Oonnat(ee) Karo”.

While this was going on in Kolkata, Didi in question, Mamata Banerjee was totally numb, shell shocked, stumped, clean bowled in her shanty Harish Chandra Chatterjee Street rickety’decadent/crumbling hutments, stone’s throw distance away from local CPI(M) office from where, insiders there were peeping at her  amusingly and informing to State CPI(M) BigShot-n-Left Front Chairman Biman Bose (doing astrology with his only-for-him decades old closest GaneetKaar Bhroshto Nandy, from Pabna in BanglaDesh, on when will CPI(M) be in power again)  goings-on in her shacks. Mamata having Mooree-TeleBhaajaa, was wonderstruck how she did not fathom the Amit Shah-storm threatening to blow her away. She realized it is only a matter of time before she would be ordered quit-or-relinquish-or-be-dismissed. She saw the clearest writing on the wall of Harish Chandra Mukherjee Street on the other side of her house in Harish Chandra Chatterjee Street, BJP will not let her Government stay in office of course because of her own creation of Policy Paralysis in her Government because of which there is no no progress of any kind in her Governance. This has made the people of the state blatantly repent voting for her and ousting CPI(M)-Left Front. …Now they have turned their liking, penchant away from Her.

Says Nervy-but-so-far-CM-posing Finance Minitster Amit Mitra picking his mobile phone :”No I am not Amit Mitra. His phone is different.” Before this correspondent could ask ‘Who R U?’ or “U R Amit Mitra, I know Ur voice since Ur Delhi days” or “As Amit Mitra, why R U concealing that Amit Mitra’s number is different. Presuming it is, why are U fiddling with his Mobile. R U an imposter? Or masquerader”, he brusquely hung up. Unbelievable but true to the core. Amit Mitra who assuredly insisted to address him as only Dr (he is supposed to be Dr (how only he can explain) Amit Mitra) and always claimed himself to be Mamata’s consensus replace as WB (West Bengal) Chief Minister is now fully down and out. Amit Mitra-influenza has afflicted him. Imagine his senses as West Bengal Finance Minister (as New Delhi based-FICCI CEO, he was razor sharp tackling national-international-local-rural-muffasil-Panchayat level equally-rationally. He was never butt of any controversy except when he was involved in defalcations-cum-cirruption-cum-misappropriations. But that was not a slur to his IQ, intellect or intelligence. He looked, sounded every inch a Delhi School of Economics Pass Out) as one seriously wonders what is he doing as Bengal Finance Minister ? No answer. There are no A/C available on the details of Amit Mitra’s working.

Imagine RachPal Singh, Minister for crucial Planning and Development, (or, earlier his Tourism portfolio) told JUST IN PRINT (he himself picked up his mobile phone first, which exchanging greetings like Sat Sri Akal, Nomoshkar etc disconnected the phone and then rang up himself after a minute and restarted exchanging greetings/promised to give a ‘nice interview on his departments for National Level consumption so that the countrymen know how good the Mamata Banerjee Government is working, how competent is Rachpal Singh (IPS officer he was) etc. He gave his Email ([email protected]) for JIP to send questions in. He was absolutely confident then.

Next day since morning, he never picked up his mobile. Repeated calls were made by this correspondent but all that proved to no avail. In the deep evening, another mobile was used. Rachpal Singh picked it up immediately. He was in full aplomb. The moment however he heard the caller was the day before’s Just In Print’s NewsMan, his voice became almost unheard. He said he was down with influenza. As soon as he would be alright, he would answer the questions sent to him by Email. That means he received the questions in his Email.

Obviously he was directed to be scared (by ?) after the thunderously over crowded meeting — reliable information is, RachPal Singh is really pally with Amit Shah via state BJP Chief Rahul Sinha; RachPal Singh has also been assured to be made Deputy Chief Minister in the next BJP State Government; that has made Rachpal Singh mighty  excited; he is all prepared to slog for the BJP-Government in West bengal state — of BJP National President Amit Shah shoutedly openly declared that it was now the turn of the West Bengal state including Kolkata to unfurl BJP flag, install BJP Government in Secretariat, have BJP Ministers, have BJP as the Ruling Party in the state. The concept is : Make West Bengal BJP-ised, so that, BJP be in every nook-n-corner of the state. In Kolkata, BJP should be in every house including Alimuddin Street (famous for Hqs of the CPI{M}), Harish Chandra ChatterJee Street (famous for Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s house) etc.

Judge the (nervous, jittery, flummoxed, constrained) state of following ministers on November 29 evening : “I am not aware of the response to the Amit Shah meeting/rally in Kolkata. I’m now seeing in TV that a lot of people have spontaneously gathered at his meeting. It is surprising. I always maintain only Trinamool Congress today is capable of mustering such huge gathering being the ruling party in the state. How can the BJP manage such huge crowds in Kolkata? It only shows Trinamool Congress’ reduction in power/popularity/attraction/people’s disechantanment with Trinamool Congress exactly in the lines of their disillusionment with the CPI(M), Left Front and throwing them out of power after 34 years. But then Trinamool Congress is less than 10 years in power” wonders,” wondered totally confused Agriculture Minister Purnendu Basu (his plea stopped short of “I’m ready to join the BJP rightaway…call me, take me, make me BJP-ised”) ([email protected]). “Its clear that the BJP-wave has gripped the state. It will naturally be soon enough for the BJP to take over from Trinamool Congress  which indeed is tottering. Its promises to the people have not been met with so far. Couple that with bombardment of the Lottery Scandals — 1 after another. Saradha Scandal is height. Whole lot of top shots of the Trinamool Congress are being exposed of their Saradha-money fiddling in crores, trillions etc. Naturally the state’s people feel cheated, frustrated with Trinamool Congress, Mamata Banerjee, her Government which is now malevolent, maleficent in every sense for them. …Trinamool BigShots are wondering what if Mamata Banerjee gets stuck in Saradha now, what then. Before that happens, it is better to cross over to the BJP, tomorrow’s-party-today-in-West Bengal.”

Adds Minister without any department (?) Sabitri Mitra : “I am at my wit’s end wondering how am I a Minister without a portfolio? I am a Minister and I do not have any department. Chief Minister long back told me that she would give me departments for which I’m still waiting. Under the circumstances, what wrong will I do if I join the BJP? There I have been offered free hand to operate freely in sensitive, crucial Muslim-dominated Malda district where if BJP gets some seats in the coming assembly elections, it is sure to win seats all over and form Government in the state. Malda is a crucial test for BJP in the entire state. I have been offered to look after Malda. If I succeed there, and if BJP wins any moment due state assembly elections in the state, I’m sure to get proper departments. I’m thus now turning towards BJP.”

This correspondent spoke to half a dozen more ministers including ever young, perennially flamboyant Har-Dil-Ka-Dharkan-n-style-shower-to-all-ages Subrata Mukherjee, Minister for crucial Public Health Engineering, Panchayat, Rural Development (they are extremely important as such like anywhere else in the country for grass root democracy, hence grass root developments, hence relevance to all people upto the last village level, albeit fully messed by the CPM and Left Front in their 34 years’ Governance wherein these departments had closed, they were never heard of).

According to gruffy-voiced Subarat-da (to all ages) : “Departments under me go on like any other government departments. Nothing shaky about it. There is no newness in these departments. To me, they are like any other Government Departments wasting time, dough. …As for BJP wave in Bengal, Kolkata, yes, it is settling in , there is no doubt in it. If it becomes masses oriented, then I might consider joining it. Now I am whiling time in Trinamool (Congress) as I continue to be Trinamool as I was in the Indian National Congress. If BJP can bring a real change in West Bengal state in its very social existence packed with up-to-date all round facilities then it will definitely be terrific. People in this state will zoom in to the BJP without being even asked to do so. …I’m keenly waiting for that day.”

From these quotes (and many more ministers spoken to by JIP), it is amply clear that the Ruling Party’s Ministers —  even its MLAs — are thoroughly disillusioned with “non performance” of Mamata Banerjee, her thoroughly ineffective Chief Ministership, her only concentration on being malevolent to her detractors, her maledictions are equally irksome, her every-second-grouse-complaint-grumble, for-her-nothing-is-alright-projection-all-the-time etc.

They have thus began adhering to Narendra Modi’s “Soch Badlo, Dal Badlo, Sarkar Badlo, BJP Lao, Paschim Bangal Bachao, Neekammee Trinamool Sarkar Nahee Chaaheeye, Didi Aap Retire Ho Jaao, Ab Aap Tapasya Kijiye, BaanPrastha Ashram mein Raheeye.”

At the time of writing, Mamata Banerjee is facing such stumbling blocks every where. She is however unruffled. She says : “I am Mamata Banerjee. I have come up through all kinds of hellish struggles. I am unstoppable. I have seen it all, I know all. I have experienced all. I am thus not ruffled. I am fully aware that there is nothing than can disturb my government, least of all Amit Shah, BJP or Narendra Modi. As far as Rahul Sinha (West Bengal BJP Chief) is concerned, he is a naïve not even a novice. …Thus, Trinamool Congress Government will remain. The state’s people will continue to support it and Me. …As for the crowds in Amit Shah’s public meeting, its ok. He is a new Ajooba. People want to see him, listen to him…I sent them there to see for themselves how’s he so that it will be easier for them to be more ingrained in the Trinamool Congress. They then will know for sure Trinamool Congress is for them, by them, of them for all times to come.”

 

​(WITH INPUTS FROM MUKESH KUMAR SINHA)​

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