Author: Editorial
Publication: The Times of India
Date: May 19, 2008
URL: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Editorial/TODAYS_ARTICLE_Hammer_Sickle_Bombs/articleshow/3051499.cms
Introduction: Politics in West Bengal is reduced
to arson and violence
It is rare that ministers speak so candidly
in public. Two ministers of the Left Front government in West Bengal have
gone on record about the arsenals their respective parties stock to fight
political battles. RSP minister Kshiti Goswami regrets that his party has
only hand bombs whereas CPM cadre carry light machine guns, muskets, revolvers
and explosives.
Besides the weapons, the minister added, the
CPM has the backing of the police and the civil administration. Abdur Razzak
Molla, the CPM minister, didn't deny his colleague's allegations; he said
that violent clashes were inevitable because it's a turf war out there.
The ministers have only revealed the truth
about politics in West Bengal, which appears to flow from the barrel of a
gun. Unfortunately, even senior leaders who are part of the government are
unwilling to recognise that they are reducing democracy to a sham. Political
parties compete to build and expand their bases, sure. But should they do
it by refusing to yield space to competitors?
The recent RSP-CPM clashes are hardly ideological
but aimed at achieving territorial control. They reflect a total disregard
for a fundamental feature of democratic politics: Democracy is a battle of
ideas that ought to be resolved through debate and dialogue in a peaceful
manner. The participants are morally and legally bound to respect the right
of their rivals to espouse views and ideals.
Senior Left Front leaders like Jyoti Basu
have called for restraint among allies. That's understandable because the
invincibility of the Left Front government - the coalition has been in office
since 1977 - is largely because of the cohesive nature of the alliance. A
split within the Left Front can seriously damage its electoral prospects.
Basu, one of the architects of the coalition
and its leader in government for more than two decades, is well aware of the
consequences of Left Front allies turning against each other. But a statesman
like him should look beyond the needs of the Left Front and impress upon party
members and allies to adopt an accommodative political culture.
The authoritarian ways of parties like CPM
have had a brutalising effect on politics and development in the state. The
continuing violence in places like Nandigram is because of the party's refusal
to recognise the democratic right of the people to disagree with the government's
policies.
There's no point blaming the opposition or
fringe elements like Maoists for ushering in a political culture of violence.
If it continues in this manner, the tide is going to turn against the CPM
at some point.|
