oppn parties Mamata Tries to Pass the Buck

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  • Supreme Court questions the continuing relevance of two-child norms. The Court observed that falling fertility rates have weakened the population-control rationale behind laws disqualifying people with more than two children from contesting local body elections. It referred the issue to a larger Bench for consideration
  • Supreme Court declines to shift Tirupati laddu case outside Andhra Pradesh. The Court rejected a plea seeking transfer of the trial, despite arguments that political statements by Andhra Pradesh's Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister could affect the fairness of proceedings
  • Supreme Court transfers Azam Khan's fresh ED bail plea to Allahabad High Court. The apex court declined to consider the Samajwadi Party leader's bail request in a fresh Enforcement Directorate case and directed that it be listed before a division Bench of the High Court on November 16
  • Two killed in Delhi building collapse; contractor booked. Two bodies were recovered after a building collapsed in Chawri Bazaar. Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta said the contractor had been booked and the concerned junior and assistant engineers suspended
  • Uttar Pradesh voter rolls show a 2.4-crore discrepancy. A difference of approximately 2.4 crore names has been reported between the state's panchayat and rural Assembly voter lists. The Election Commission has ordered the two sets of rolls to be matched
  • Gujarat announces 3% dearness allowance hike. The state government announced a three-percentage-point increase in dearness allowance for government employees and pensioners ahead of Diwali
  • Sensex and Nifty post their strongest single-day gains in months. The Sensex surged 2,008.61 points, or 2.60%, to close at 79,310.01, while the Nifty 50 climbed 576 points, or 2.40%, to 24,536.60. Financial and automobile stocks led the rally, supported by falling crude prices and renewed foreign investor buying
  • Maaya Rajeshwaran reaches WTA-level quarter-final. The 17-year-old Indian defeated Poland's Weronika Falkowska 6-4, 6-3, becoming the first Indian woman since Sania Mirza in 2012 to reach a quarter-final at a WTA Tour-level singles event
  • Tanvi Patri reaches Youth Olympics badminton final. The 15-year-old defeated Japan's Yuzuno Watanabe in the semi-final, assuring India of a medal and becoming the first Indian badminton player to reach the girls' singles final at the Youth Olympics
  • India beat Pakistan 3-2 in SAFF Championship. India defeated Pakistan in a closely contested match, having led 3-0 before conceding two late goals. The victory was reported as a significant result for India's second-string side
  • India beat Japan 4-1 to win a record sixth Asian Champions Trophy. India recovered from an early deficit to defeat Japan in the final at Mohali, extending its record as the tournament's most successful men's team
  • The Supreme Court issued notice to the Centre and the Election Commission on a petition challenging Section 16 of the Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners Act, 2023, which grants the CEC and Election Commissioners protection from legal proceedings for acts performed in their official duties. The petition argues that such blanket immunity could leave citizens without an effective remedy for alleged wrongdoing by the Commission
  • The Supreme Court told voters whose names were deleted from Delhi's draft electoral rolls not to be apprehensive about seeking re-enrolment through Form 6, after the Election Commission assured it that such applicants would not be prosecuted merely because their names had appeared in earlier rolls
  • Congress leader Rahul Gandhi opened the party's campaign for the 2027 Punjab Assembly elections with an Insaaf rally in Sangrur, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann's home district, accusing the AAP government of failing to control drugs, gangster violence and corruption. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge outlined six commitments, including a drug-free Punjab, protection of farmers, employment for young people and action against corruption
  • Rahul Gandhi accused the AAP government of running Punjab through a remote control from Delhi and questioned Bhagwant Mann's ability to tackle drug abuse, making personal allegations about the Chief Minister's conduct during their time together in Parliament
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Mamata Tries to Pass the Buck

By Sunil Garodia
First publised on 2015-12-03 17:13:34

About the Author

Sunil Garodia Editor-in-Chief of indiacommentary.com. Current Affairs analyst and political commentator. Author of Cyber Scams in India, Digital Arrest, The Money Trap and The Human Hack
Mamata Banerjee, in an effort to distance herself and the party from the Saradha scam, said a couple of days back that the party is not to blame if certain members are found to corner ill-begotten funds. This is a strange statement coming from one of the cleanest leaders India has seen. To understand why this stand is unacceptable, one has to delve deeper into the working and control system of a party like the Trinamool Congress (AITMC).

As with any closely held political party, decision making in AITMC starts and ends with its supremo, Mamata Banerjee. Nothing in the party happens without the express permission and by extension, knowledge of the supreme leader. Also, West Bengal followed a tradition of political parties having a finger in every pie, including personal lives of citizens, for the 34 years of Left rule. The TMC has carried this forward.

Hence party leaders indulge in all kind of dubious activities like providing shelter to building syndicates, chit funds and other nefarious businesses for a fee. It goes without saying that a major part of this money is taken as funding for the party. The Left at least maintained a façade of collecting small donations of Rs 5 and Rs 10 from shopkeepers and households to show it was a bourgeoisie party. TMC does not even do that. The party is flush with funds and spends lavishly during elections. So where do the funds come from?

Banerjee herself is a simple person with small needs. Her needs can be entirely met by the salary she receives. But the same is not true of the party. Politics is a costly business despite the caps on spending in place. The army of goons any political party maintains requires a fortune. Vaulting political ambitions have meant that the TMC needs a huge war chest. It ensures that its coffers are filled regularly by its leaders. Now if the she turns a blind eye to the source of funds and chooses to distance herself and the party from the wrongdoing of one of her hitherto trusted lieutenants, she is showing that either she is naïve or that she thinks that public is stupid enough to believe her.

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