Paromita Das
New Delhi, 12th July: Once hailed as the City of Joy, West Bengal today wears a different crown — a crown of fear, unrest, and silent tears. Decades ago, Kolkata’s bustling tramlines, soulful Rabindra Sangeet, and vibrant literary addas made it Bharat’s cultural heartbeat. But today, the same streets echo with cries of injustice, fear of lawlessness and muffled protests buried under political slogans. As the people of Bengal grapple with violence, eve-teasing, rapes, corruption, and social unrest, their Chief Minister — affectionately called Mamata Didi — has chosen to shift her battleground to Delhi, voicing concerns for Bengalis living miles away while her own backyard burns
When Safety Turns into Slogans
In recent months, West Bengal has witnessed a series of chilling incidents that would shake any government into action. From the horrifying RG Kar hospital rape case to the tragic assault on a young law student, Bengal’s women walk its streets with hesitant steps and guarded eyes. But for the ruling Trinamool Congress, these heart-wrenching cases rarely move beyond mere sound bites. Justice remains buried in files, while families mourn under the shadow of political slogans that promise but seldom deliver.
One can’t help but ask — when did Bengal’s famed sense of safety, its “adda culture”, and its poetic freedom get replaced with fear? Why do victims’ families find more comfort in candle marches than in the promises of their elected government?
Protests Dismissed, Voices Silenced
If Bengal’s women are unsafe, its professionals feel unheard. Teachers who once shaped Bengal’s intellectual glory now sit on streets, demanding fair recruitment and unpaid dues. Rank-holders have protested for months, yet all they got were water cannons and allegations of being opposition puppets. Doctors, the very backbone of Bengal’s pandemic fight, are forced to strike for their own security and basic working conditions.
Yet, Mamata Banerjee, with her trademark defiance, brushes them aside as “BJP conspirators.” Is this leadership or an echo chamber where genuine grievances are mocked to protect a political fortress?
Borders Breached, Crime Unchecked
While Delhi keeps Mamata busy, Bengal’s porous borders remain wide open. Reports of unchecked Bangladeshi and Rohingya infiltration have been making headlines for years — changing demographics, overburdening resources, and, many allege, spiking crime rates. Hindu communities in border districts speak of assaults and forced migration — stories that rarely make it to the CM’s speeches.
Instead of securing Bengal’s people, the ruling party’s policies seem to favour a dangerous game of appeasement. Communal tensions simmer silently, bursting forth in sporadic violence that the government downplays or dismisses.
Courts Cornered, Democracy on Trial
West Bengal’s judiciary, once a pillar of hope, now struggles under political interference. From the SSC recruitment scam to the infamous School Jobs scam, court orders have met bureaucratic hurdles at every turn. Ministers and leaders have faced arrest, only for Mamata to brush them off as “witch-hunts” masterminded by Delhi.
When the courts speak, democracy must listen. But in today’s Bengal, the line between governance and political shielding grows blurrier by the day.
The Great Delhi Diversion
So why Delhi? Why does Mamata Banerjee, the self-proclaimed champion of Bengali pride, find more voice for Jai Hind Colony than for her own people’s cries?
While eviction drives in Delhi invite her fury, slum clearances in Kolkata barely elicit a word. When the Centre acts, it’s “anti-Bengali.” When the state acts, it’s “development.” The irony is not lost on Bengal’s common folk who wonder if their CM is more interested in fighting political battles on national turf than solving local nightmares.
Bengal Needs a Leader, Not a Spokesperson for Delhi
Bengal is not a political stepping stone. It’s a land that once gifted Bharat Nobel laureates, reformers, revolutionaries, and poets. It deserves better than shallow deflections and unkept promises.
If Mamata Didi truly wants to wear the crown of Bengal’s protector, her battleground must be Kolkata’s broken streets, Bengal’s insecure borders, and its silenced classrooms — not TV studios debating Delhi’s local issues
A State on Edge, A Leader on the Fence
Every rape case that goes unsolved, every teacher’s protest that goes unheard, every communal clash that’s brushed aside chips away at the soul of this once-glorious state. The City of Joy cannot survive on nostalgia alone. It needs safety, transparency, and above all, leadership that listens before it lectures
Final Words: A Call for Real Governance
Mamata Banerjee’s fight for Bengali identity in Delhi would ring truer if her own people felt protected, heard, and safe. Until then, her cries for Delhi sound more like political theatre than genuine concern.
It’s time Bengal’s leaders fix Bengal first — or risk watching the City of Joy sink deeper into being the City of Bhoye.
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