The deaths at Dinhata are a tragic consequence of the battles for political space that Bengal is increasingly witnessing. For many years, such battles had been between the ruling Marxists and the Opposition parties. The most ominous signal from Dinhata is that even partners of the ruling Left Front now see violence as a means of strengthening themselves. The Forward Bloc’s civil disobedience movement was a legitimate way of highlighting its demands. But the party was clearly more concerned with assessing its own strength and making inroads into its rivals’ turfs. The party had announced its plans to fight the coming panchayat elections on its own in areas where it has strong support bases. The mobilization of its flock was therefore a dress rehearsal for its planned show of strength for the rural polls. The manner in which the party’s supporters at Dinhata attacked government offices, set fire to police cars and fought the police with stones would point to a method in the madness. It was apparent that the attacks on government property were actually meant to be a message for the biggest partner of the Front, the Communist Party of India (Marxist). The backdrop, of course, is the rising tension between the CPI(M) and its allies in the Front over Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee’s industrialization and other policies.

As the events at Singur and Nandigram last year showed, Mr Bhattacharjee faces tough political challenges to his economic agenda. The last thing he needs is violent, obstructionist politics by partners of the Front. Wednesday’s bandh cannot do his — or Bengal’s — image any good. Even for a state as notorious for its political culture as Bengal, a bandh organized by a constituent of the ruling coalition smacks of political irresponsibility of the worst kind. But the chief minister has other reasons to worry about the events at Dinhata. The police firing there suggests that the men in uniform are increasingly incapable of tackling a mob without killing people. Memories of the police firing at Nandigram are still fresh in the people’s minds. The government cannot afford to give them the impression that the police in Bengal are not accountable for their actions. Despite the violence at Nandigram and Singur, Bengal’s successes in attracting investments last year were second only to Gujarat’s. But continued violence and administrative bunglings can spoil the promise.