Kolkata flyover collapse could hurt Mamata, Trinamool's Assembly election prospects

Coming on the heels of a corruption scandal involving the Urban Development minister, the Kolkata tragedy could eat into the TMC's vote and seat share

It's not the best of times for Trinamool Congress chief and Chief Minister of West Bengal Mamata Banerjee.

The buzz around the Narada news video, allegedly showing ministers, MLAs and MPs from the ruling party taking cash for extending favours to a fictitious company, was just dying down when disaster struck on a busy afternoon on Thursday in one of the most congested areas of the city. The 2.2-km under-construction Vivekananda Road flyover collapsed, claiming 25 lives and counting as rescue operations continue.

The timing couldn’t have been worse for Banerjee with the Assembly elections just days away. The first phase starts on April 4 in West Medinipur. The more immediate repercussion of the mishap, however, is likely to be felt in the city where elections are due on April 21 and April 30.

Banerjee, who was campaigning in West Medinipur on Thursday, immediately rushed to the spot on hearing news of the flyover collapse and got into character. With a microphone in hand she started micromanaging rescue operations. A makeshift Nabanna (state secretariat) was set up some 500 metres from the site with a fax machine, et al. It was important to be seen at the disaster site and Banerjee stayed till late into the night.

She had already absolved her government's involvement by saying the flyover contract was given to the Hyderabad-based contractor, IVRCL, in 2009 by the Left Front government. But right now, no one is buying that argument.

The Left Front is accusing not just the government but Banerjee personally. Last November, Banerjee had announced that the flyover would be completed by August 2016. “In an authoritarian regime, no one questions the queen. There was a mad rush to complete the flyover, which has caused this tragedy. The chief minister should take moral responsibility for this mishap,” CPI(M) leader Mohammed Salim said.

The flyover had missed the deadline at least six times with the original deadline being 2011. According to the contract, Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority was supposed to supervise at every stage, Salim pointed out. “What were they doing when a fault was detected the previous night by the contractors?” he asked.

TRAGEDIES UNDER MAMATA BANERJEE'S GOVERNMENT

December 9, 2011: 90 people were killed in a fire at AMRI Hospital and its promoters were taken into custody

March 3, 2013: The Ultadanga flyover collapsed after a steel girder broke

March 31, 2016:  At least 21 people killed and several injured after part of an under-construction flyover collapses 

The BJP and Congress, too, are raising the pitch against Banerjee. The BJP has asked for a CBI investigation. Both the parties have said it smacks of corruption. “The urban development minister has been caught taking a bribe in the video, so what can we expect? This is under his ministry. Why is it that the contractor has changed the design and the course so many times?" Salim asked. A Trinamool MP added to confusion today by saying that the design was faulty and he had informed the state government but 50-60 per cent of the work had been completed.

Banerjee on her part is set to take IVRCL to task. Kolkata Police has lodged three FIRs against the company. Seven executives of IVRCL have been detained for questioning.

This will not be the first time that Banerjee has punished a company for loss of lives in a tragedy. Months after she took charge as CM, there was a major fire at the Emami co-promoted AMRI Hospital that killed 90. The Emami promoters were taken into custody immediately, which had a wide repercussion on the city’s Marwari business community that felt discriminated against. This time, however, with elections knocking on the door, it is a different ball game.

Till a few months ago, the elections were meant to be a cakewalk for Banerjee. After the Narada incident, however, a ABP Ananda-Nielsen opinion poll has given Trinamool 178 seats in the 294-member Assembly as opposed to the 190 that it had bagged in 2011. The Left-Congress combine is expected to bag 110 seats, while the BJP is likely to remain a marginal player with one seat.

In terms of vote share, the Trinamool Congress-Congress alliance had secured 48 per cent in 2011 while the Left was at 39 per cent.

This time the Trinamool Congress is expected to garner 45 per cent vote share and the Left-Congress close on its heels at 44 per cent, according to the opinion poll.

Banerjee is still slated to win, but suddenly calculations on margins are no longer a certainty. Yesterday's mishap just made things hazier. “In 2011, many of the Left Front supporters voted for the Trinamool. This time, many Trinamool supporters may vote for the Left,” a Left leader suggested.

Till yesterday, a feel-good factor was working in Mamata's favour what with festive lights burning bright across the Kolkata. The lights are still there, but today no one is feeling good.