Mamata Banerjee is the eighth Chief Minister of the eastern Indian state of West Bengal and the first woman to hold this office. She founded the Trinamool Congress in 1998 after splitting from the Indian National Congress and has represented the Bhabanipur constituency in the state assembly since 2011.
When Mamata Banerjee first joined the Congress (I) in the 1970s, she rose to be the General Secretary of the State Mahila Congress (I) from 1976 to 1980. She has previously served as an MP for Kolkata South in the Lok Sabha and was the Union Minister of State for Human Resources Development, Youth Affairs and Sports, and Women and Child Development under the P.V. Narasimha Rao government.
One of the defining moments in Mamata Banerjee’s political career was her involvement in the Singur and Nandigram movements. These movements — centered around land acquisition issues, particularly the acquisition of agricultural land for industrial projects — saw her rise as a leader and advocate for the rights of farmers and local communities in Bengal’s Singur and Nandigram districts. She received widespread support, eventually leading to the downfall of the 34-year-old Left Front government in West Bengal and her ascent to power.
First declaration, I am not a bhakt – have nothing to do with BJP. But Sagarika Ghose, right from childhood i have been appalled by your lack of integrity as a journalist. Do you live in Bengal? have you seen the state of affairs of the state? Not that CPM was any better than TMC but what is happening in the state right now is tearing apart the very fabric of the society. This government is systematically destroying – Education, healthcare and law & order.
You seriously think the student of RG Kar medical college got justice? God forbid if it was your daughter – is that the justice you would have settled for? Which government spends crores on Kapil Sibal to fight a case against its own people?
Come on lady, listen to your conscience for once!
And @thePrint – you are the only paper that I care reading because it feels like real journalism – facts, as they are. Today even you proved me wrong. You shouldn’t have printed this article. Not you. Disappointed.
Read your interesting article.
30percent and 25percent upper caste hinduss r the only reason mamata s n power. Bjp has to get the backing of south Bengals 3 upper castes to have a shot.
God has something for everyone, let’s see what awaits ‘evil’ Modi and ‘saint’ Banerjee.
Madam Sagarika Ghose, by virtue of being a veteran of the Armed Forces, I have crisscrossed the length and breadth of the country. Because of my current job profile, I am based out of West Bengal.
I beg to differ with you on most of the counts. The rosy picture you have presented about the current scenario in WB and the stature of the CM is either because of your political compulsion or because of your ignorance. Yes, the dole being handed out in different forms is definitely a factor that will favour the current political dispensation, but that does not respresent the actual mindset of the citizens.
Probably you are unaware that West Bengal has lost its typical Bengali culture decades ago and it is presently a cosmopolitan society. People speaking various languages and enoying various food habits stay here but tragically the state government is trying to create a division by stoking Bengali sentiment to counter BJP’s agenda. Moreover, you must be aware that a subtle communal and radical division has taken place in the society not because of BJP’s Hinduism propaganda but because of the state government’s favouritism strategy to counter the BJP.
You have brought shame on yourself by trying to prove that justice was delivered in the RG Kar Medical College case. I strongly believe that your conscience must be quizzing you for being so heartless towards a lady doctor on duty and her parents.
While trying your best to justify that Modi is not going to win Bengal, you have failed miserably in highlighting the actual state of affairs with respect to the state of West Bengal.