Unlike Tamil Nadu’s “amma”, Bengal’s “didi” is not a reluctant politician. If J. Jayalalithaa was “pushed” into the films by her mother and then into politics by her mentor, M.G.R., Mamata Banerjee embraced politics. Both Mamata and Jayaalalithaa fought their way to the top. Jayalalitha was assaulted and pushed down from the gun carriage carrying MGR’s body during the funeral procession and was manhandled by the DMK members in Tamil Nadu Assembly. Mamata survived a brutal attack by a former CPI(M) functionary, Lallu Alam. On August 6, 1990 when Mamata was leading a Congress procession, the CPI(M) goons attacked her and a lathi-wielding Lallu Alam dealt a near fatal blow to her head. Mamata survived the death blow, Jayalalitha survived the humiliation and both rose like phoenix from the ashes, crushed their political rivals, took charge of the state and stormed into national politics.
Mamata, who decimated the Left and demolished her parent outfit — the Congress in West Bengal, started her political career in her college days. While studying at Jogamaya College, she established Chhatra Parishad (Congress’ students’ wing in Bengal) by defeating the Socialist Unity Centre of India’s students’ wing, Democratic Students’ Union. Mamata grew up in a lower class middle family and according to reports, her father, Promileswar Banerjee died due to lack of medical treatment when she was only 17. Aggressive, fearless, outspoken, Mamata’s rise in Congress was rapid. She remained general secretary of Mahila Congress from 1976 to 1980 and in the 1984 general elections, she emerged as the “giant slayer”, defeating one of the CPI(M)’s tallest leaders former Speaker Somnath Chatterjee from the Jadavpur Constituency.
She lost in 1989 but was back from Kolkata South Constituency during the 1991 general elections and retained the berth till 2009 general elections, following which she took over power in Bengal. She was dropped from the Narasimha Rao Cabinet in 1996 for accusing the state Congress of behaving like a “stooge” of the CPI(M). In 1997, she walked out of the party form the Trinamul Congress, which eventually “freed” Bengal from nearly 37 years of Left rule.
Today Mamata has edged past Mayawati and is fast emerging as the face of the anti-BJP and anti-Congress forces. Perpetually dressed in a simple white handloom sari and rubber chappals, Mamata, like the Pied Piper is leading the parties, which could possibly come together to form the federal front during the 2019 general elections. She’s a threat, one that even the all powerful and charismatic, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is not willing to take lightly.
Like Mayawati and Jayalalithaa, Mamata too has had a love-hate relationship with the BJP. All three were once part of the BJP-led NDA. Like Jayalalithaa, she too had been the reason behind the fall of the Atal Behari Vajpayee-led NDA government. Electorally none of these “power puff girls” have been able to make a mark outside their states. Yet all three have had Prime Ministerial ambitions. “From Fort St. George (Tamil Nadu’s legislative assembly) to Red Fort” was the slogan of AIADMK during 2014 Lok Sabha polls. During the same elections, Mayawati voiced her ambitions and told her vote bank that if they voted intelligently, “dalit ki beti could also be the PM”. After winning spectacularly in West Bengal, Mamata hinted at a central role in bringing the regional forces under one umbrella. She has set in motion her game plan.
Handicapped in Hindi (essential in north Indian politics), with no electoral base to speak of Mamata has charged like a light brigade into Modi’s territories, ranging from Varanasi to Lucknow to Gujarat. Some say like Modi, Mamata Banerjee has the skill and ability to go for the jugular. Like Modi, she has the tenacity, she connects to the crowd and takes her opponent head on without mincing words. Her supporters say, “no corruption charges sticks to her”. She’s inflexible and uncompromising. Master of confrontational politics, Mamata has hedged her bets on the economy hit hard by the demonetisation move of the Modi sarkar. In the next two years, Mamata might not be able to retain the momentum, but with her moves of leading the Opposition, advising and devising a strategy she has certainly emerged as a face BJP would like to forget.
