Mamata plays to the gallery at Naxalite heartland

Promises land rights for tribals, prods insurgents to give up violence

If all roads were leading to Lalgarh early on Monday, by late afternoon there was hardly a way out of the town in the heart of West Bengal’s Naxalite stronghold.

Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee’s gamble to hold an “apolitical” peace rally in this hamlet, which has been garrisoned for more than a year now, almost went off without a glitch. Ironically, the problem lay in the meeting’s success.

With over a lakh supporters turning up for an event that was expected to accomodate less than half that number, the swell clogged the main road that leads to and out of Lalgarh for hours after the rally.

But the masses at the makeshift venue – nothing more than a spruced up school playground – reacted to little else than Banerjee. And she, with an eye on the assembly elections next year, played to the gallery.

“I propose to bring a comprehensive bill for securing the forest rights of the tribals. The forests are their birth right. Ministry, or no ministry, doesn't matter. Only people matter,” Banerjee said, to set off a wild cheer from the gathering.

Forest rights is an emotive issue with the tribals. Even though the Centre passed the Forest Rights Act in 2006, the implementation resulted in a deluge of projects that ended up violating the Act.

Banerjee touched upon other issues that resurrected her political career in Bengal after the last assembly elections, including Singur and Nandigram.

“I am against forced land acquisition. I have asked my department not to acquire land forcibly. We will protest against the Land Acquisition Bill,” she said. Her continued stance on this issue made the UPA government put the bill on the backburner.

Clearly, the “apolitical” platform was set up to continue her campaign against the CPI(M) while aiming to bring the Naxalites to the negotiation table.

“Abuse me if you want to, but stop the murders. Stop this politics of murders. The CPM is wearing police and CRPF uniforms to continue with violence. There can be negotiations (with the Naxalites) within a democratic framework. Let the peace process begin. Today is a historic occasion,” Banerjee proclaimed.

Clearly, Banerjee wanted to pick up from where Swami Agnivesh – present at the rally – left it. The latter in his address implored the Prime Minister to investigate the death of Naxalite leader Azad.

The rhetoric of the Swami and Medha Patkar was lost in translation before the crowds. Few seemed receptive to the Hindi that they spoke.

But it was all ears when Banerjee spoke, and then a quick exit once she was through. A short while after the rally, at a nearby house in Lalgarh, a government employee, who didn't wish to be named, was left gasping for words. The torrid sun apart, the sheer numbers that Banerjee’s “apolitical” platform drew amazed him.

“She can’t say much now because she is a Union minister. But things will change once she comes to power in Bengal. For us here, there is hope,” he gushed.

Optimism, often, is a product of oppression.