Free hand

Sir - The recently held municipal elections in Bidhannagar, Bally (in Howrah) and Asansol (in Burdwan) raised a pertinent question - who are the real voters? The distinction between genuine voters, who waited in queue with their voter ID cards to cast their ballots, and the ruffians who wreaked havoc has been blurred because of the flooding of booths by rogues from other places ("Brazen invasion of Salt Lake", Oct 4). The Trinamul Congress, which is in power in Bengal, is guilty of indulging in the malpractice of booth capturing. In this, it is behaving much like its predecessor, the Communist Party of India (Marxist).

Miscreants supported by the ruling party intimidated and threatened voters with dire consequences if votes were cast in favour of the Opposition parties. Officials from the State Election Commission were not seen at some of the polling booths. This left voters at the mercy of these dreaded criminals. It is widely believed that most of the elections that have taken place in West Bengal in the last three decades have been rigged. Since the mid-1980s, the Left Front had hijacked the electoral procedure by hiring partisan government employees to oversee the electoral process. This helped them indulge in all sorts of malpractices, such as the incorporation of the names of deceased people in voters' list.

On the days of polling, hooligans were sent by the leaders to coerce people into voting for them and their parties. It is disturbing to see goons intimidate voters. These miscreants forcibly occupy the polling booths. If they get a free rein in conducting the electoral process, then democracy will be ruined.

Over the last two decades or so, students' wings of various parties have also unleashed a reign of terror in colleges and universities. They have done so in various ways - by creating obstructions for Opposition candidates while collecting nomination papers, kidnapping them on the eve of the polls, and through widespread bribery in matters related to admission. Students and teachers alike are harassed by members of these students' wings. Teachers are roughed up if they are assertive and refuse to fall in line with the henchmen's point of view.

Universities and colleges have become training grounds for miscreants, who are now responsible for messing up bigger elections. Criminals, under the patronage of the TMC, dared to threaten voters in Salt Lake and other places even in front of the media. The situation in the rural areas is worse. People are traumatized and panic-stricken there. Most of these incidents do not get reported in the media. I wonder how our democracy can be safeguarded.

Yours faithfully,Santanu Basu,Chanchal, Malda

 

Sir - The behaviour of workers of the TMC during the recently held Bidhannagar municipal elections in West Bengal proves that the ruling party is full of ruffians. The way journalists were beaten up mercilessly while the police remained mute spectators shows how the latter have become puppets in the hands of the ruling dispensation. It seems that the TMC has given hooligans a free hand. During the assembly elections of 2011, the people of the state had voted overwhelmingly for the TMC, enabling it to form the government. Their faith was reflected in the joy they had felt when the party came to power.

And now people are scared of criticizing the ruling party. They fear that if they do so, they will have to face the wrath of TMC leaders, leading to imprisonment or threats of dire consequences. Women are no longer safe in West Bengal now, people are not able to vote freely and the police take action only if they receive orders from the ruling party.

There has been no progress in West Bengal from the time the TMC came to power. The structure of governance has been crippled in the state in the last four years. If free and fair elections are to be held in the state in future, Central forces have to be called. The government should feel ashamed of itself for bringing such discredit to West Bengal.

Yours faithfully,Sanjay Kapoor,Calcutta

 

Sir - What one saw in television shows and read in newspapers regarding the Bidhannagar municipal elections prove that the election process was controlled and vitiated by workers and miscreants from the ruling party. These miscreants were led by assembly members, leaders, and councillors belonging to the TMC.

It would not be wrong to say that this election was anything but free and fair. The Opposition was justified in demanding a repolling.

Yours faithfully,Anil Kumar Choudhury,Kalyani

 

Sir - The people of West Bengal cannot condone the violence that was unleashed allegedly by workers of the TMC during the Bidhannagar municipal elections. The assault on journalists is unprecedented. It is shameful. The inaction of the police also shows the anarchy that is prevailing in the state. Those who attacked the journalists, with the tacit support of party leaders, should understand that such incidents destroy the democratic ethos of the nation. Criminal-turned-party-activists must be punished. The TMC must drive these miscreants out of the party.

The way the party workers indulged in violence is shocking. It is unfortunate that such ruffians are patronized by representatives of the people. Politics in West Bengal is getting murkier with every passing day and we should be ashamed of it.

Yours faithfully,Samir Chakraborty,Howrah

 

BIHAR

In need of protection
 

Sir — I would like to draw attention to the fact that doctors working in government hospitals continue to be manhandled by patients’ relatives. The state government is doing nothing about it even though the Bihar Medical Service Institution and Personal Protection bill was passed in the assembly in 2011, which makes an attack against doctors a cognizable offence. Bureaucratic control on government health facilities has also increased in the rural areas. The State Health Society in Bihar is taking action against the doctors who are found to be regularly absent in their respective health departments. However, the monitoring technique adopted by the Bihar government is faulty. The State Health Society is making calls and collecting information over the phone only. If any health facility fails to answer the phone, action is taken against it. 
This is unfair to the doctors. Why does the health society not focus its attention on improving the infrastructure of the healthcare facilities? Machines for CT scans and other important diagnostic tools are missing from nearly every health facility. The lack of these diagnostic technologies has resulted in most of the cases from basic health facilities being referred to the government’s medical college hospitals. The government should first focus on these things before taking unfair measures against doctors. 

Yours faithfully,Santosh Kumar, Darbhanga

 

Speak with care

Sir — The remarks made by various politicians in the run-up to the assembly elections are below-the-belt and totally unwelcome. Recently, the Rashtriya Janata Dal 
supremo, Lalu Prasad, called the Bharatiya Janata Party chief, Amit Shah, a “narbhakshi”. Narendra Modi said that the devil was governing Prasad’s tongue when the latter said that Hindus also eat beef. Comments like these are not expected from such political heavyweights. They should understand that ordinary people do not approve of political leaders making such remarks. Instead of using such strong language against their opponents, these leaders should talk about the problems they want to solve after winning the elections. But nobody seems to be interested in that. The Election Commission was right to come down heavily on politicians for making derogatory remarks. Cancelling nominations would definitely deter such practices. If our politicians continue in this vein, our country’s image will be affected. The beef controversy is also showing us an unpleasant side to our politicians. They seem to be competing with each other to see who can fling the greatest number of insults this election season. The voters have to be very careful; they should listen intently to the promises being made by politicians. They should not vote for anyone simply on the basis of caste preferences. 

Yours faithfully, Sumita Singh, Patna

 

ODISHA 

 

Disgraceful behaviour

Sir — Cuttack is known for its hospitality. But the incident that took place during the second Twenty20 international match between India and South Africa at the Barabati stadium has tarnished the city’s reputation (“Crowd trouble spoils mood”, Oct 6). The crowd, which is usually sporting, got worked up at the Indian team’s poor performance. They booed the Indian players and threw bottles into the cricket ground. 
However, it is the organizers, the Orissa Cricket Association, which must be blamed for this incident. The people of Cuttack are also responsible. The lackadaisical attitude of the OCA in preparing a pitch, which was not up to the mark, and the police’s failure in controlling the crowd are the real reasons behind the incident. The fact that the crowd had water bottles to throw — bottles are banned in most other stadiums in the country — shows the association and the city in a poor light. The OCA should apologize to the Board of Control for Cricket in India and the International Cricket Council. The Barabati stadium may be banned from hosting international cricketing events. If the OCA apologizes, some of the damage may be controlled. 

Yours faithfully,Subhendu Biswal, Cuttack

 

 Sir — The Barabati stadium is suffering because of the OCA’s negligence. The stadium that once used to host Test matches now begs to host one-day international matches of even minor teams. This shows the decline in the condition of the stadium. The OCA had also encroached upon government land adjacent to the Barabati stadium, using it for its own profit. The local administration did the right thing by taking over the adjoining land and the Barabati Palace.
There is a dearth of space for sports training in the city. The premises adjacent to the stadium should be used for training purposes instead of being lent out as a wedding venue. The behaviour of the spectators has brought further disgrace to the stadium, which was known for its fast batting pitch and its considerable capacity. 

Yours faithfully,Pratibha Mohapatra, Cuttack

 

 Sir — The response of the police to the crowd frenzy at the Barabati stadium was disappointing. The crowd went out of control and threw bottles at the players. How could the police be so ineffective when an international cricket match is going on? Were they deputed to enjoy the match or take care of security at the venue? 
The attitude of the spectators too was shameful. The responsibility for the untoward incident should be shared by the OCA and the police. They had boasted of their arrangements for controlling the crowd ahead of the match. It is high time the people realized that such behaviour would hamper the image of the state.

Yours faithfully,Aditya Pradhan, Bhubaneswar

 

 Sir — What should matter the most at the end of the day, more than winning or losing, is a good and disciplined game. The behaviour of the spectators reflects our backward mindset. I am sure some of the people in the crowd were drunk. People in their normal state of mind would not indulge in such disgraceful acts. Cricket is touted as a gentleman’s game involving not only the players but also the spectators. Cuttack has been shamed before the international audience because of some ill-behaved people. Players, bureaucrats and people from various fields have expressed their disgust on social networking sites. 

Yours faithfully,Raj Kishore Samal, Berhampur

 

 Sir— The behaviour of the crowd at the Barabati stadium in Cuttack made for a sorry sight. This must have been viewed all over the world by cricket fans, who will now conclude that Cuttack’s spectators are a bad-tempered and unruly lot. It is good that the chief minister has ordered a probe into the matter. This will ensure that the people in the crowd who brought disgrace to the state are identified. They should be banned form entering any sports venue in future. 

Yours faithfully,Sunanda Prusty,Bhubaneswar