Democracy on trial in West Bengal

The process for the local bodies’ election in West Bengal — with polls due on May 14 — has been thoroughly vitiated on account of violence let loose by the ruling party’s cadres in the state. Recent orders of the Calcutta high court and the Supreme Court point to the extent of distortion that has occurred.

In the absence of adequate police support, the Election Commission has evidently not played the part expected of it. Surprisingly, chief minister Mamata Banerjee, who hopes to lead the nation, appears to have shown little concern for democratic norms as her party’s cadres have gone on the rampage.

It is shocking that 34 per cent of all seats have been won uncontested. The ruling party allegedly did not permit its opponents to file nominations. Bodily harm was caused to those who attempted to do so. On Friday, senior Trinamul Congress leader Partha Chatterjee cynically noted that those who cannot even file nominations had no business being in politics.

Given the extraordinary state of affairs, the high court permitted candidates to email their nominations. This was stayed by the apex court, but the top court has said that the results of the seats that went uncontested will not be announced with the other results.

We seem to be on new terrain here. Does this mean that the poll body can entertain a challenge to the process for every constituency where there was a single nomination, and then order a collective re-poll?

Reports of ideological opponents the CPI(M) and BJP moving jointly in some places to cope with the violence have been shot down by the CPI(M), but the denial has been met with scepticism. The atmosphere evidently has been anything but democratic.