Left Parties Protest in Delhi Demanding Re-poll in West Bengal

The last phase of elections for 17 Lok Sabha seats in West Bengal held on May 12, has been marked by widespread violence, capture of more than a thousand polling booths, polling agents of opposition parties being driven out and physical attacks on people going to vote in various places.

The Trinamool Congress had launched this campaign of terror and intimidation on the eve of the polling. The worst incident took place in Haroa block in the Basirhat parliamentary constituency where fire was opened at voters going to the polling booth. Four persons suffered bullet injuries and sharp weapons injured 17 others. 

Some of the worst affected seats are Kolkata North, Barrackpur, Ghatal, Dumdum, Basirhat, Bongaon and Diamond Harbour.

Along with the rigging done in the third and fourth phase of polling, this constitutes a brazen attack on the democratic system. Despite this violence, people have been braving these attacks and asserting their right to vote. 

The Left parties have noted that it is shocking that the Election Commission has been unable to intervene effectively during this round of polling, even though there was enough forewarning about what was to come, after the earlier two phases of polling.

The Left parties demanded that the Election Commission intervene urgently to restore conditions for a free and fair poll. And only ordering a re-poll in all the affected polling booths in the third, fourth and fifth rounds of polling can do this, they said. It is only by doing this that the sanctity of the democratic process can be protected, they underlined and called upon all the democratic forces to voice their protest against this assault on democracy in West Bengal.

Hundreds of people turned up at Jantar Mantar in Delhi on May 14, responding to the call given by the Left parties to register their protest at the widespread violence, terror and rigging in the elections to the Lok Sabha elections from West Bengal.

Addressing the protest meeting, Prakash Karat, General Secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) accused the Election Commission of disregarding the repeated complaints made by the Left Front and the CPI (M) demanding timely intervention to stop the electoral process in the state from becoming a complete mockery. He lamented the fact that despite the Party demanding re-poll in many affected booths in the last three phases of the polls in the state, the Election Commission has not ordered re-poll in over thousand booths where polling was rigged. This happened despite the polling process being vitiated with large-scale intimidation of voters, terrorisation and even firing upon voters. Though the media, both print and electronic, in West Bengal has reported these incidents widely, the Election Commission is yet to take cognisance of it. Pointing out that the Election Commission has still time before the counting takes place on May 16, he remarked that the people will lose faith in the electoral process if it does not order re-poll in the affected booths thereby restoring the confidence of people.

Recalling the rigged elections to the West Bengal assembly in 1972, the CPI (M) General Secretary was categorical that like in 1977 when the authoritarian forces were defeated, Bengal will repeat history again. Bombs and bullets, Prakash Karat said will not deter the people. The Left has a history of struggles and sacrifices. Hundreds of its cadres have sacrificed their lives in the cause of the movement. Such attacks will not deter them. Expressing support and solidarity with the people of Bengal in the face of these attacks, Prakash Karat said the Left and democratic people in the entire country stood behind them in the struggle to restore democracy in the state.

Terming it as an attack on democracy, CPI (M) Polit Bureau member, Sitaram Yechury said that if the Election Commission is unable to perform the constitutional duty vested in its office, it has no right to remain in office. He said the Election Commission is bestowed with the duty of conducting free and fair elections. Accusing the ECI of its failure in performing this duty, he said by its actions, the faith of the people in such constitutional institutions has been undermined.

Sitaram Yechury however said that it is not the first time that this attack on democracy has taken place in West Bengal. This he warned is a precursor to what the entire country will face tomorrow. Sitaram reminded that when attack on democracy took place in 1972 other democratic forces in the country did not rise to the occasion. It was only after Indira Gandhi imposed the internal emergency in 1975 that the country woke up to its perils and the authoritarian forces were defeated in 1977. But, in the meanwhile, thousands of people lost their lives in the concerted attacks against the party and thousands of others were thrown out of their homes.

Accusing the media of partisan portrayal of the events and even going to the extent of accusing the Left of being paid back by the TMC with Left's own tactics, Sitaram said, had the Left been indulging in rigging in all these elections, Mamata Banerjee would not have come to power at all in the first place.

The Red Flag, he said will be in the forefront of the struggle to restore democracy and that the people of the country will not accept this mockery of democracy.

Veteran CPI leader, A.B. Bardhan speaking on the occasion reiterated the demand for re-poll in all the booths for which re-poll had been demanded by the Left parties. CPI General Secretary, S. Sudhakar Reddy narrating the various malpractices and incidents of violence indulged in during the elections said that while genuine voters were prevented from proceeding to the booths to cast their votes, there were largescale complaints of bogus voting. He termed this as an attack on democracy and wondered why the Election Commission is not taking remedial action. Forward Bloc General Secretary Debabrata Biswas and RSP Central Committee member Dagar also spoke on the occasion. Polit Bureau members S. Ramachandran Pillai, Brinda Karat and A.K. Padmanabhan along with many members of the Central Committee also participated in the dharna.