In ‘palturam’ vs ‘loyalist’ fight in Bengal’s jute belt, a desire for end of political violence

A common sight that greets you in Kolkata’s northern suburb of Barrackpore is giant banners and posters with caricatures of Arjun Singh as “Palturam (turncoat)”. Next to him is a caricature of Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari offering the sitting MP a “BJP lollipop”, as Singh’s opponent Partha Bhowmik, the state PWD minister, enjoys the view, sitting on an “MP chair”.

What catches your eye is that these posters, put up by the TMC, are all in Hindi, a nod to Barrackpore’s significant population with roots in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh.

Situated on the eastern bank of the Hooghly, Barrackpore is a major industrial area once famous for its jute factories that drew thousands of workers from the Hindi belt. With several adjacent towns within the constituency, almost half of the voters are urban. Approximately 35% of the population mark Hindi as their mother tongue.

The city, which will vote on May 20, is also one of the epicentres of political violence in a state infamous for the same. It peaked between 2019 and 2021, due to the turmoil caused by Singh’s defection and the resulting turf war. For many residents, therefore, the coming election is about more than just choosing a candidate.

Like for Md Firoz, whose 10-year-old son was disabled after mistaking a bomb for a ball last year. “He had operations in both eyes, but his right eye still doesn’t have clear vision. He also lost a portion of his left hand. We have been running around for a ‘handicapped’ certificate. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had come to meet him at the hospital, but we didn’t get any aid from anyone. I don’t wish this pain on anyone, so I will vote for peace,” says Firoz.

Bahubali…

Singh, whose father was a three-term Congress MLA from Bhatpara, entered