As West Bengal panchatyat polls draws near The Statesman’s Dola Mitra spoke to TMC sitting MP from Dum Dum parliamentary constituency Prof Saugata Roy on a variety of issues pertaining to the TMC’s poll plank and how it will tackle the rise of BJP and how Didi is going all out to every nook and corner of the state leaving no stone unturned. Here is what Prof Saugata Roy has to say.

Excerpts

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Q. You are amongst the 50 senior leaders of the party to have been hand-picked by Didi to campaign in the rural areas before the Panchayat Polls next month. When you reach the villages tomorrow what will be the main focus of your campaigning?

A. There will be two broad aspects to the campaigning. In the first, we will highlight the progressive, developmental projects and scheme of the Mamata Banerjee government, and in the second we will focus on the deprivations and neglect meted out to the state of West Bengal by the BJP-led government at the Centre. In the first aspect, we will highlight the Trinamool government’s contributions which immensely benefitted the poor people in the districts and other rural areas. We will especially highlight the Lakshmi Bhandar scheme which already benefitted 2 crore women from poor families since its inception. The other developmental scheme that we will focus on is the Kanyashree program, which has already benefitted 1 crore girls and women from needy families. We will also bring attention to the Sabuj Sathi scheme which has benefitted 1 crore students. We will also highlight the Swasthy Swathy scheme which has not only benefitted the poor but people of different economic groups too and has helped all.

Our next focus will be to highlight how the BJP-led government has deprived the state of its financial entitlements. This includes not clearing money for payment of dues to the laborers engaged in the 100-days-work guarantee scheme under the national rural employment act. We will also point out how while Mamata gives rice for free, the Modi government charges Rs1200 for cooking gas.

Q. What about other issues and future plans for progress and development in rural areas?

A. Yes, that’s also a big part of the campaigning. We are going to highlight developmental work which is in progress. We will bring attention to one of the most important projects in progress which is the “piped water” scheme in which the homes of the poor people in the districts and villages will receive water in pipelines. The work is going on and it is scheduled to be completed by the year 2025.

Q. While Mamata Banerjee’s public distribution schemes in the rural areas are indeed very popular and the poor people do, clearly, appreciate these, going by the results of elections in the past decade, a section of the rustic electorate, however, say that they would like to give the political party which did not yet have a chance at governing West Bengal (namely BJP) a chance. How would you address this issue?

A. Anti-incumbency is not a strong factor in these elections. The BJP had tried to push its communal agenda throughout Bengal and it did not succeed. The number of people who say that they want to give a chance to an alternative is very small.

Q. How would you explain the BJP’s gains in terms of both increases in the number of seats as well as rises in vote share?

A. BJP is a communal party. They tried their divisive agenda and they took it everywhere. Ultimately it did not convince the electorate of West Bengal.

Q. From tomorrow Didi will begin campaigning in North Bengal’s Cooch district. Trinamool’s All India General Secretary Abhishek Banerjee will start campaigning in South Bengal’s Nadia district before heading out to other areas. That too after completing a massive two-month long rural-outreach program during which time he visited virtually every part of the state. Why is the Trinamool government going all out as far as campaigning for the rural elections is concerned if the impact of the rural developmental project is so positive and the public distribution schemes so popular?

A.  We are constantly strengthening our rural base and it is important to stay connected with the people on the ground. The Parliamentary elections are coming up next year. This is also a preparation for that.

Q. How would the Panchayat Polls be a preparation for the Parliamentary elections?

A. The results of rural elections are going to give us an indication of the ground.

Q. Please comment on the violence that had allegedly been taking place during the filing of nomination papers for the Panchayat polls.

A. Trinamool is for “free and fair” elections. While a few incidents would have occurred, the scale of violence is much less now than in the past.

Q. Finally, what do you think of the decision made by Didi in the June 23 meeting in Patna to join hands with other Opposition parties to fight the BJP in the 2024 general elections? Will the camaraderie with the Left at the Centre be extended to the state?

A. The state will not at all be impacted by the decision at the Centre. The Trinamool is fighting the BJP at the Centre with other Opposition parties to defeat the BJP-led NDA government. In the state, the Trinamool does not need the help of the Congress and the Left. It is not trying to defeat the BJP here. Trinamool’s only agenda in the state is to continue to give its people, progress, and development and to ensure that it has the people’s support.