West Bengal before even its State Assembly elections which are due in April-May next year is turning out to be a hotspot. While the nearly ten-year-old ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) wants to retain power, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is aiming to dislodge a decade old Mamata Banerjee government. The straight fight between the Centre and the State has already begun and it is likely to be murkier as the elections approach.
Three Indian Police Service officers who are serving in West Bengal were summoned on Saturday by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) to serve in Central deputation. But do these all India service officers have the option to refuse the orders of MHA? According to the Indian Police Service (Cadre) Rules, 1954, in case of any disagreement between the Centre and the State governments, “Provided that in case of any disagreement, the matter shall be decided by the Central government and the State government or State governments concerned shall give effect to the decision of the Central government”.
These three officers belonging to the West Bengal cadre have been called to serve in Central deputation in view of the lapses which allegedly led to an attack on the visiting BJP National President JP Nadda’s convoy in West Bengal last Thursday.
The rules for deputation say a cadre officer may, with the concurrence of the State government’s concerned and the Centre, be deputed for service under the Central government or another State government or under a company, association or body of individuals, whether incorporated or not, which is wholly or substantially owned or controlled by the Central government or by another State government.
Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had termed the incident a “drama” and has charged the BJP for the instigating violence. Meanwhile the State Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar has accused the bureaucracy of ignoring his warning about a potential threat to law and order and warned the chief minister “not to play with fire”. The Union government has steppedin into the issue, with the Union Home Ministry asking for a report from the administration. These events are un-nerving, especially since a political slugfest is destined to escalate as the State Assembly elections approach.
Governor Dhankhar, a former BJP leader, has invited the charge of partisanship in the positions he takes on major issues. It is also the case that local BJP leaders such as State BJP chief Dilip Ghosh are engaged in heightened public campaigns. None of this, however, takes away from the fact that the primary responsibility of upholding law and order lies with government.
Law and Order is a State subject and as Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has the responsibility of keeping it under her control. If any political party crosses the limits of constitutional propriety, the government can take legal recourse and suitable administrative action. However, Banerjee has till now, turned a blind eye to her party leaders and cadres, who are accused of unleashing violence against the opposition parties, particularly BJP. In the past, the Communist Party of India (Marxists) – (CPM) and Congress, too, had blamed the TMC for attacking their workers.
If we dig a bit into history, Mamata Banerjee in 1990 was assaulted savagely when members of the Democratic Youth Federation of India, the CPI (M)’s organisation, surrounded her and hit her with rods and sticks and injured her very badly on the streets of Kolkata. Yes, she is a street fighter and she came to politics by fighting on the streets and dislodging the very strong CPM which governed West Bengal for nearly 34 years.
Political pundits from West Bengal believe that since Mamta after nearly ten years of rule is facing a huge anti-incumbency factor, and she has very few issues left with her to fight the BJP and her best bet could be that the Union government imposes President Rule in the State. As a street fighter, which is her forte she can take BJP head-on.
The BJP on the other hand has realized that if they impose President Rule in the name of breakdown of law and order in the State, they will be offering the 2021 State Assembly elections to Mamata Banerjee’s TMC on a platter. The BJP camp believes that after so much work they have done at the Central level, it is their best opportunity to change the government in West Bengal as they did in CPM-ruled State of Tripura in North East.
