Open and shut case

Shut shop

Sir — The editorial, “Strike again” (Dec 15), could not have been more accurate in showcasing the chief minister’s plight. Calcutta, in fact, is about to create a record of sorts. With its statutory holidays and bandhs, the city has about 170 working days. It is perhaps the only city in the world to have the least number of working days. The credit for this is due not only to political parties but also to ordinary citizens, who sometimes plan long weekend sojourns in anticipation of bandhs. Calcuttans discuss the prospect of bandhs with the same enthusiasm they analyse Sourav Ganguly’s batting. The gusto with which people throng the markets on the eve of a bandh has to be seen to be believed. The chief minister of West Bengal does not have the power to stop such organized events year after year. Wonder how he intends to change the future of this state.

Yours faithfully,
Rahul Dutt, Calcutta

Sir — The bandh of December 14 was forced on the people of the states where the Communist Party of India (Marxist) and the Centre of Indian Trade Unions have a presence. The rest of India was hardly aware of the strike. However, the left did its bit to see that its minority vote bank was not antagonized. Planes ferrying haj passengers were excluded from the purview of the bandh in Calcutta. When even the IT sector was not spared, what else other than appeasement can explain the special treatment for a certain segment of the population?

For the rest of the population, there was no state transport, not even the Metro rail, which was supposed to operate. At the end of the day, however, the leaders were found congratulating the people for making the bandh successful.

Yours faithfully,
Asit Kumar Mitra, Calcutta

Sir — The people of West Bengal have endured three bandhs in a fortnight, the one on December 14 being particularly brutal. All flights except the ones that left early in the morning were cancelled. The stranded passengers were denied food and water. Trains did not run either. Citu hoodlums even managed to stop the Metro. Despite the claims of the IT sector, one doubts the attendance in Salt Lake’s Sector V. While call-centres worked, software firms recorded low attendance. Major companies like IBM and TCS declared a holiday, sensing trouble.

For most of its history, the CPI(M) and its affiliates have called bandhs repeatedly on the same issue — the ‘anti-people’ policies of the Centre. The left should remember that it is now an ally of the Central government. If the Centre is really following anti-people policies, what stops the CPI(M) from withdrawing support? The truth is that the left specializes in doublespeak. Since Marx has become irrelevant to the Marxists, disruptions of the December 14 kind are needed to keep the cadre happy.

Yours faithfully,
Tapan Das Gupta, Burdwan

Sir — What the Citu did on December 14 was criminal. Its every effort to stop office-goers and others travelling on the road was a violation of fundamental democratic rights. Do the cadres realize how many lives they are putting at risk? How are people supposed to reach patients to the hospital in an emergency? The Citu is a monstrosity which needs to be banned.

Yours faithfully,
R.K. Ghosh, Calcutta

Sir — The bandh called by the Citu not only paralysed parts of the nation but also deprived wage labourers their earnings for the day. It is unfortunate that besides stalling the parliament over trivial issues, the CPI(M) is making life difficult for Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, who is trying to bring West Bengal back on the path to development.

Yours faithfully,
R. Sekar, Nalco Nagar, Orissa

Sir — The newspapers are claiming that the December 14 bandh did not affect the IT sector. My experience has been different. A strike is an unlawful protest, which cannot be accepted in any democracy. Our overseas clients were not at all happy because they lost one vital day for the strike. A lot of assignments were disrupted. After my long explanation for the reason of the strike, my European client asked me one question: “Will the strike help India’s poor or labourers in anyway?” I did not have an answer to the question. Maybe our striking friends can.

Yours faithfully,
Indrajit Chaudhuri, Lausanne, Switzerland

Sir — The caption for the front page picture on December 15 which read, “A slap in the face of citizen and court”, should have read “a slap on the face of an ineffective government”. Instead of bringing to an end the bandh culture, the government is allowing bandhs of all hues. Perhaps the state should back a counter army of bandh-foilers on the road to compensate for the loss of face and business.

Yours faithfully,
Tuli Das, Calcutta

Parting shot

Sir — The Calcutta police should immediately force all taxis to install electronic metres. Some taxis still have the old metre, which allows them to cheat passengers. For the distance between Bangur Avenue to Howrah station, for which we normally pay Rs 110 to Rs 120, my wife was asked to pay Rs 230 for the same distance. The taxi driver also produced an old chart to justify the fare.

Yours faithfully,
R.S. Sharma, Calcutta