Bengal Political Violence Should Not Be 'Normal'

First up

Dear Readers,

As we were about to dispatch today's newsletter focusing on political violence in Bengal, news broke that Kolkata Police has imposed Section 144 for 60 days starting May 28.

• CP Vineet Kumar Goyal said there was information from credible sources about violent demonstrations.

As per the order, "unlawful assembly of five or more people, unauthorised processions or demonstrations, including those political or religious, are prohibited."

This also means: After May 28, no campaigning will take place in Bengal for Phase 7 (June 1) of Lok Sabha elections.

Ironically, the first thing we look at in today's newsletter is the unabated political violence in Bengal.

• Amar Govindarajan writes on DMK's atheistic appropriation of Hindu saint Thiruvalluvar.

• In the end, we will go through a primer on Phase 6 of 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

- Anmol N Jain

Sad saga of political violence in Bengal refuses to wither away

The infamy of political violence in Bengal doesn't seem to be ending anytime soon.

The latest instance: Rathibala Aari, a 56-year-old woman BJP supporter was killed by miscreants on May 22 — two days ahead of voting. Her son Sanjay, a leader of BJP SC Morcha also sustained grievous injuries.

• Family members of the deceased are calling it a political murder by TMC-backed goons.

• "Our brother-in-law was in Trinamool but later switched to BJP. So, Trinamool people were angry as he was working for BJP."

However, TMC has called it "BJP’s internal feud" between old-timers and new recruits.

A policed police: What followed was a spate of violence in which even police were prevented from entering the area.

• That the Leader of Opposition had to go police station to get an FIR registered, reveals the broken state of law and order in the state.

• The video of LoP Suvendu Adhikari at the Police Station shows how helpless (or complicit) the state police is.

• He also alleged that the police met with an accused Trinamool leader in the police station.

Adhikari's charge: He called the bloodshed "a direct fallout of Bhaipo’s [nephew - Abhishek Banerjee] provocation in Nandigram".

• "Rathibala Arhi was not only Sanjay Arhi’s mother. She was my mother too and we want the criminal to be brought to justice immediately," he said.

• "The hands of the jihadis do not tremble before hacking a woman to death. BJP will see this through to its end, exact revenge in a legal manner, and respond by democratic means."

As BJP workers continue to protest over the unabated killings, the situation remains tense in Nandigram.

The bigger picture: Political violence in Bengal — first under the Left and now under Banerjee's Trinamool — has been normalised to a chilling effect.

• It is not only the BJP workers who have faced the terror of ruling party's muscle.

• Trinamool's INDI bloc ally Congress also continues to complain about the same.

Bottomline: Acceptance of this terror as the nature of politics in Bengal is a manufactured tragedy. The apathy, complacency, and complicity of the administration, judiciary, media, civil society, and the supposed 'defenders' of human rights are all accountable.

Reversing the appropriation of Thiruvalluvar, the Hindu saint

In Tamil Nadu, DMK says Valluvar is not Hindu: And Governor N Ravi is keen to take on the DMK on this topic and refuses, rightly, to get of a chance to point out the truth to DMK.

• Invites trouble: Ravi yesterday sent out a Thiruvalluvar Day invite showing the poet in saffron robes and vibhuti smeared on his forehead.

• Dravidian reaction: Along expected lines - they've come out criticising this 'saffronisation'

• One step further: The Governor went one step further and visited the Thiruvalluvar temple in Mylapore, Chennai - just to prove a point.

Some background: The Dravidian - EV Ramaswamy school of politics in Tamil Nadu has tried to depict this pan-Tamil poet as an icon of a Tamil - Atheist worldview.

• But they're wrong - Thiruvalluvar's own works show how deeply embedded his thought and works are in the Hindu way of life.

• Change his birthday! The DMK ecosystem also changed 'Thiruvalluvar Day' celebrations to a convenient date in January instead of using the traditional calendar.

• With BJP's ascent and with Governor Ravi's moves there is an attempt to undo DMK's false narrative on Thiruvalluvar.

Would you like an example of Dravidian distortion of history? An AI chat bot was recently published with elaborate false explanations for Thiruvalluvar's writings on Indian cultural themes.

• You can read about this issue in detail here.

Phase 6 voting tomorrow

Phase 6 of 2024 Lok Sabha elections: Tomorrow (May 25), Indians in 58 Lok Sabha constituencies in 8 states and UTs will exercise their franchise.

• Voting will take place in Bihar (8), Haryana (10), Jammu & Kashmir (1), Jharkhand (4), Delhi (7), Odisha (6), UP (14), and West Bengal (8).

• In Odisha, 42 assembly constituencies will also go to polls.

The key candidates and seats in the fray include BJP's Bansuri Swaraj against AAP's Somnath Bharti in New Delhi.

• Manoj Tiwari and Kanhaiya Kumar are battling it out in North East Delhi.

• Maneka Gandhi (Sultanpur), Akhilesh Yadav's cousin Dharmendra Yadav (Azamgarh), Sambit Patra (Puri), Naveen Jindal (Kurukshetra), Manohar Lal Khattar (Karnal), and former Calcutta HC judge Abhijit Gangopadhyay (Tamluk).

The seventh and last phase of elections will be held on June 1 across the remaining 57 constituencies before the final results on June 4.