In April 2010, Mohammad Mursalin could hardly wait to cast his vote.
On the eve of the Calcutta Municipal Corporations polls 2015, the resident of Topsia Road in east Calcutta is undecided if he will vote at all.
" Kya fayeda hai vote dekey? Kuch to badlega nahi. (Why should I vote when nothing is going to change?)" says Mursalin, the despair in his voice hard to miss.
Mursalin, 32, is sitting inside his shop near Kohinoor Market - a Topsia landmark famous for merchandise "imported" from Bangladesh and Thailand - where he sells children wear.
In 2010, Mursalin and other residents of the Topsia-Tiljala-Tangra belt were hopeful that the change of civic guard would bring about improvements in their living condition.
Filtered drinking water, adequate street lights, daily removal of garbage and a proper sewerage - in other words, the basic amenities, which residents of many wards take for granted, would finally come to their localities.
Instead, the area has witnessed a spurt in illegal construction and worsening of the hawker problem. Open vats continue to pose health hazards and filtered drinking water is still a distant dream.
"The condition of the area has not changed. The pathetic condition in which the people here stay has not changed either. Only the party at the helm has changed," says Mursalin. "Despite staying within the city we have to buy drinking water. The law and order has worsened and filth is increasing by the day."
Ward 59 and Ward 66 make up the maximum part of the area. Once a CPM stronghold, the place is now a fief of Javed Ahmed Khan, a minister in Mamata Banerjee's cabinet.
In the core area of Topsia, opposition is conspicuous by its absence. The entire area is covered with campaign paraphernalia of the Trinamul Congress.
Huge posters with pictures of Mamata Banerjee and Faiz Ahmed Khan, Trinamul Congress candidate in Ward 66 and son of local MLA and minister Javed Ahmed Khan, have covered the façade of ramshackle buildings in the area.
Workers of opposition parties allege that Trinamul gangs are not letting them campaign. Local residents say there are hardly any workers in the rival parties who will campaign for them.
"In every election after 2010, Muslims in this area have voted for the Trinamul Congress en masse. But the party has not fulfilled its development promise," said Arshad Hussain, a resident of Picnic Garden.
"Mamata Banerjee is giving allowances to imams and attending religious functions. But we want civic amenities," said Mohammad Ansar, a resident of GJ Khan Road.
Trinamul candidate Khan says development in a huge ward like the one he is contesting from can take several years. Ward 66 has a population of over 2 lakh, of which 71,000 are voters.
Khan goes on to list the development work done by his father and mother, both of whom have been councillors from the ward. "Two CMC schools have come up, where more than 2,000 children study. A plot for a college has been earmarked. More than five high mast lamps have been erected," says Khan.
What about garbage, roads and drinking water?
"Roads have been dug up because pipes are being laid to bring drinking water from a booster station on GJ Khan Road. In many areas people have started getting filtered water," says Faiz.
The state of civic amenities in Ward 59, from where Trinamul's Jolly Bose is contesting, is no different.
The neighbouring ward, 69, which constitutes most parts of Ballygunge, is a picture in contrast. The roads are levelled and lined by trees. The pavements are comparatively clean.
Khan is confident of victory because of the "good work" done by his father and mother as councillors of Ward 66.
"Our family has dedicated its lives for the people of this area. The people have recognised their contribution by voting for us election after election, This time, too, they will vote for me," says Khan.
Mursalain, who has just made up his mind, thinks otherwise. He says he will cast his vote to register his protest.
"If our vote can bring a political party to power, it can also bring it down," he says, with a tone of determination.
