Where are those hearts gone?

Even as the new Government in West Bengal is working in the capital at break-neck speed to fix the manifold economic and administrative crises that the 34 year rule of the communists had gifted to the State, Ananda Bazar Parika and The Telegraph, Kolkata report killings and oppression of political activists and their families in several rural areas: most of the suffers seems to be those who supported the CPM. The 24 Ghata TV channel has been showing the helpless people affected by such incidents.

And, there is not yet any sign of the politicians, intellectuals and human activists rushing to the spot of accidents to protect them and sympathize with them.  The Police, although freed from political party slavery by the new government is not yet agile enough to avert such incidents and protect some CPM activists who have been attracting revenge by Trinamool cadres because of the victims atrocities during the CPM rule. Perhaps the police in the districts have long lost the initiative of actions on their own having been goaded into action only by the CPM local leadership and sponsored mafias.The Police, according to the CPM leaders including Buddhadev Bhattacharyya, is hands in glove with the Trinamool activists organising such repression on CPM supporters/ activists, though there have been incidents where the Trinamool activists have suffered at the hands of allegedly CPM activists. For the first time in 35 years, CPM is tasting the fruits of the seeds it had sowed in Police administration.

 Unlike Mamata who used to rush to Singur and Nandigram to stand beside the people oppressed by the CPM sponsored mafia, named by her as Harnmad Bahini,  the greatest shock of his life from the electoral debacle has so far confined Buddhadev to Kolkata urging the 42% of the voters to keep the Red Flag flying high and has not yet rushed to the spots to stand beside the adversely affected CPM supporters / activists. It seems unfortunate that this time Mamata, the Current Chief Minister is still fully tied up in solving the numerous thorny problems she has inherited from Buddhadev's government and CPM party: she cannot has not now to rush to the rural areas to protect the afflicted families of the CPM activists/ harmad bahini members. Probably, she needs to put two half ministers on the job of curbing these political violence of taking revenge: the ministers could move around sensitive areas to stop such violence and continuously report the developments to Mamata: for continuing revenge mongering lead to resurgence of the major law and order problem created  in the State by the former government and the CPM.

Intelligentsia, the singers, the stage actors, the performers of fine arts and human activists do not seem to be interested in stopping bloodshed.  Nor are the TV channels. True, the  current incidents are unlike the the incidents in the past when these were organised by the ruling party leadership to terrorise the opposition. But, bloodshed and violence of any form and type needs to be avoided by civilized societies. The capable and socially responsible hearts should be fanning out to the sensitive areas in sustained peace missions. The great latent rage against the past oppressors currently without the backing of the State has to be diffused rather than allowing it get reflected in killings and violence.

Chief Minister Selection: Hard look at Resumes of Candidates

The State was in a serious trouble: it was facing armed struggle with guerilla warfare techniques in areas with forests and on the borders, it was running a huge debt burden and continuous budget deficits, its governance standards were pretty poor with all State-run hospitals unable to deliver medical and heath services required by the State, students of the State were running away to other States to pursue higher education of better quality and greater diversity, its police was both corrupt and in connivance with mafias and goons in possession of illegally procured lethal weapons, instead of serving the common man, the police was serving the rich and wealthy even if they illegally harassed poor relatives, the efficiency and productivity of the government employees were extremely low despite they being paid a very good salary and benefits to enjoy a standard of living that was few times better than the average standard of living of the low middle class and the poor, industry was stagnating in the State despite lots of land being forcibly taken away by the government. In some region of the State, some people had started movement for a separate independent State.


The citizens decided to appoint a new Chief Minister with a five year term so that the new Chief Minister can lead the State out of the morass and restore proper governance, financial strength, economic prosperity and peace. Applications were invited from willing candidates. Only two applicants showed willingness to take up the challenging task: B and M.

A Screening Committee was appointed to scrutinize the resume of the two candidates. They considered the different aspects of the resume and gave scores on a scale of 0 - 2 where 2 is better than 1 and 1 is better than 0. They gave the following appraisal report:

1. Physical ability to endure hard work: B=0, M=2 (M was younger by 10 years and works while jogging, besides having endured beating by the police)

2. Education Background: B=1`, M= 1 (Both had masters degrees in subjects not attracting many bright students as do subjects like Physics, Mathematics, Statistics, Engineering, Micro-biology, Economics, Geography, Chemistry and Computer Science)
3. Post Qualification Scholastic Achievement: B=0, M= 1 (B had one publication while M authored a dozen or so books)

4. Extra-curricular activities:
(a) Sports: B=0, M=0 (B loves to see cricket matches and interfere with cricket associations, M worked as a sports minister).

(b) Fine Art & Culture: B=1, M=2 (B shows interest in attending film festivals, book fairs and Rabindra Sangeet performances, but M loves film heroes/ heroines, sings songs, recites poetry composed by great poets, besides being a painter whose paintings are purchased by local industrialists.)

5. Verbal Communication:

a) In Mother tongue: B=1, M=1 (B finds difficulty in recalling words, M is spontaneous but without sophistication in use of words)

b) In English: B=1, M=1 (both speaks in Benglish accent and grammar)

c) In National Language Hindi: B=0, M=1 (B avoids Hindi, M is not afraid to speak in Bhindi)

6. Past Work Experience:

a) In Chief Minister or Equivalent Rank: B=1, M=1 (B has a longer experience, M has higher federal level experience)

b) Exposure to varying types of bosses: B=0, M=2 (B worked under a single Chief Minister, while M worked under 4 different Federal Prime Ministers.

c) Variety of Experience in Coalition Government: B=0, M= 2 (B has only one type, M has at least three types)

7. Ability to form and lead political party: B=0, M=2

8. Ability to learn from mistakes: B=0, M=2 (B admits mistakes again and again but fails to avert same mistakes, M does not commit the same folly repeatedly)

9. Diversity of Philosophical & Revolutionary Heritage: B=1, M=2 (B depend on imported Marxist philosophy of dictatorship on behalf of 42% of the proletariat, M is proud of Indian, especially Bengali philosophers and revolutionaries and committed to American Abraham Lincoln's doctrine of democracy of, by and for the people).

10. Mass Contact: B=1, M= 2 (B’s mass contact is indirect through junior leaders and occasional, M has direct and almost daily contact)

11. Honesty & Integrity: B=2, M=2

12. Sophistication of Attire: B=2, M=1.

13. Bad Habits: B=1, M=1 (B is a great smoker while M often breaks own security norms)

14. Ability to Envision Future: B=1, M=2

15. Ability to overcome Party Constraint: B=0, M=2 (B is dependent on his political party while the political party depends on M)

The Grand Score with equal weights to all dimensions: B=13, M=29.

But still the Screening Committee thought B should get grace marks of 16 considering the successful build up of the false high profile image of B in the minds of elite and local business class through Party promotion campaigns.

So, the final score the Committee awarded was B= 29/40 and M= 29/40.

It was a tie and the ultimate Selection Committee had to make up their minds. The organized a poll and B secured 42% against 48% secured by M.

But the selectors also chose the assistants for B and M. B got 62 while M secured 226.

The Selection Committee did not agree to award 16 grace marks to B. They chose M and M's team for the State. The local business class bought Rs3 crore worth of paintings of M when they realised there was no need to take chances a few weeks before the Final Selection Committee would give their verdict..

Upgrading Postmortem Diagnostic Technology: Post Kurushetra Bengal 02

The Indian Prime Minister reportedly had suggested that CPM learns lessons from the great decabcle it suffered in the State Assembly Elections in West Bengal and Kerala. And, in order to learn the appropriate lessons, the West Bengal CPM Leadership is indeed conducting a detailed postmortem of its unprecedented landslide fall in the elections. It has reportedly issued detailed questionnaire in which they expect the local level party functionaries from pachyats to districts to report. These reports will be scrutinised and evaluated at the State level compilation and consolidation stage before the final diagnostic report is deliberated at the all-India level of the Party.

This indeed is very good and one hopes that this time the Party will not come up with a rationalisation of their defeat in terms of blaming the environment like the opportunity created for the Trinamool and Congress to form an alliance, the delays in weeding out bad elements that infested the Party from outside and the inability of the grass-roots level party activists to establish contact and effectively with the common people. And, one hopes that they do not cite the story that the CPM has been able to circulate convincingly among its committed brain-washed voters that the EVM manipulation is a factor for their defeat (even the Americans do not use EVM is the buzz sentence you hear from CPM supporters these days: so they like the Americans at least for one count - paper ballot system that the CPM had learnt the techniques to manipulate). Hopefully, the Party would try to learn why is it that 48% of the enlarged number of voters voted against the CPM, on a scientific basis? The question is not just that 42% voted in favour of the left and the total number of votes for the left had increased and the CPM lost marginally: had the left collected 6% points more of the votes they would have been back to power. That would be just an analyses of how they could have own. After 34 years of uninterrupted power, the CPM should not have failed to win the support of at least 66% of the voters to justify their continuance in power.

Winning elections and getting majority of seats in the Assembly to form Government is the prime objective of any political power. But for the CPM and the left who sold themselves as a pro-poor party cannot just strive for clinging to power but needed to win the hearts of an overwhelming part of the electorate. That only would have justified CPM's claim that they were the most poor friendly, the most effective in providing the maximum help to the peop0le below the poverty line, the most secular, the most honest and clean, the most peaceful, the least arrogant, the least oppressive, the least manipulative and the most ardent advocate and practitioner of democracy as well as the most effective in ensuring good governance. That they may be perceived to be so by at most 42% of the voters is not enough.  They needed to be perceived as such a good party by at least two-thirds of the voters even if some of these voters might still would not have voted for them. The issue is one of the CPM-brand. Getting 42% of the votes after 34 years of uninterrupted rule is as good as getting 48% of the votes and getting 230 seats to come back to power for the CPM. If that is not the case, then CPM is no different a party than the DMK or AIDMK or BSP or TDP or RJD - all of which are in the business of capturing and abusing State power for the respective parties and their henchmen and loyalists. CPM seems to have already become such a political party and only interested in managing to win elections to get into power: it has failed win mass popularity by deliverance of proper governance, rule of law, fainess, peace and progressive prosperity of all the people, especially the people at or below the poverty line, even after enjoying State power for more than three decades. The CPM is thus another run of the mill political party basically interested in abuse of power, nepotism, corruption and oppression of the weak to enlarge their kitty of money through exploitation.

Had CPM been a party with a difference, it would have not talked about 'turning back' after the 2009 Lok Shava elections debacle in West Bengal. It would have rather seriously considered whether they are really a sustainable political product for the people of West Bengal? It did not. It continued to rely merely on reports from its own cadres at lower levels includimg district level leaders. That these reports could not really assess the voters' perception of the value of the CPM as a political party and a political idea, is surprisingly not acceptable as a logical possibility.  When even a small section of the consumers start rejecting the product of a major producer, the producer begins worrying and try to innovate to meet customer needs rather than selling the same product. But CPM apparently still thinks that they can continue to sell the product they have been selling so far irrespective of some voters not being inclined to buy such a product any longer. Merely because of the words 'Communist' and 'Marxist' in the name of the product the voters would not get convinced that the product CPM is of the quality and specifications that they would like to support and some people may get disgusted enough to try a new, untested product like the Trinamool.

If CPM was serious enough to maintain and increase their market share, it was not enough to practice entry barriers like stopping an alternative anti-CPM front by some way or the other including generating false fears in the minds of the voters about the quality of the new competing product, adopt predatory pricing policy by announcing freebies to people at the cost of the State exchequer, practice unfair techniques like scaring away voters from polling stations by using armed mafia forces, booth jamming, false voting, etc. CPM should have had built up strong competitiveness in the product it wishes to sell: there has not been any qualitative upgrading of the product in the last three decades while the voters have shown resistance to old, out-of-fashion, low quality products.

What CPM needs is an extensive survey of the tastes, preferences and aspirations of the voters and an analysis of the competitive relevance of CPM as a product in the market for votes. Even monopolies cannot survive for long without upgrading the product quality in response to shifting consumer demand patterns. CPM should have spent a few crores of rupees to commission a real market survey in West Bengal conducted by an independent professional agency of international standard to find what the voters expected from a political party and how far different political parties were perceived as being able to satisfy the voters of different segments in this respect. That would have been the first step towards knowing the Truth on the ground and learning lessons. CPM has not taken this first step of upgrading the technology of postmortem of the death of the CPM product as it exists today in the face of competition and voters' emerging tastes and preferences. It seems that CPM would take much longer time to learn about how to learn lessons from the reality of voters' requirement and perceptions. CPM will not change in anticipation, will resist change and will wait until the external factors force it to change the hard way and at greater cost.

Getting into Peace: Post-Kurusetra Bengal 01

Peace continues to elude Bengal. Political Murders are back again though remain at low key.
The incidence of political violence and murder has declined substantially during the Election Kurushetra, but has increased a bit after the new Mamata Government was installed in West Bengal.  This time most victims of political violence reportedly are CPM activists/ supporters, though the murders of Trinamool supporters/ activists continue to be reported.

 CPM is complaining seriously for the first time to a Government of the hitherto opposition. Natural. But unlike the earlier CPM government which complained that Trinamool and Maoist goons were killing the ruling party people, Trinamool is not complaining in a similar way. Rather, the Trinamool party has publicly appealed to all to desist from taking law into own hands and cooperate with the police, besides giving stern warming to party supporters and members of stern action by the party against those who get involved in political violence. The Trinamool MLAs and party functionaries have been instructed to be alert and stop the supporters from violence.  The new government has publicly instructed the police and administrators not to let murders  hide and asked them to remain neutral to political parties and act independently without political influence while dealing with complaints and taking action against perpetrators of violence.
Mamata Bannerjee, the Chief Minister has asked the police officials to directly contact her over hot line in case any attempt is made by political parties to interfere with police action to control violence and take action against criminals engaged in political violence. Mamata has also appealed for peace to the citizens, asked his party workers to stop harassing or victimising left front supporters unlike the former Chief Minister, Buddhadev Bhattacharya who would only say "this wasn't correct, and should not happened" whenever his party supporters had been reported to be involved in such murders/ killings/ violence had taken place.
Despite all the efforts of the Government and Trinamool leaders, killing incidences are being reported daily by the same Press and electronic media that the CPM has been decrying as being loyal to Mamata and Trinamool. There are two parts of the violence that is taking place now. First, stray incidents of revengeful killing of one party supporters by another party's supporters. This seems to be inevitable as the goons of the political parties are still strong in their anger against opponents during the elections in certain pockets. It seems almost impossible for political leaders to stop these killings except by allowing the police and the courts to deal with them and recover unlicensed lethal weapons in possession of the goons.
The second source of political violence has its origins in the system of looting, illicit distribution and smuggling of lethal weapons into the hands of mafias and goons sponsored by the political parties during the previous Governments, reportedly often with the help of a powerful part of the police and district administration under the influence of the ruling parties at local levels. The Election Commission during the three months or so of their hightened election process activity in the State had forced the State administration and police to embark upon a hunt for recovering illegal weapons from the possession of political mafias and goons. The result was a very big haul of captured weapons, though now it transpires that even such a big haul was an insignificant part of the stock of weapons with the political goons and mafias. The new government has instructed the police to continue the campaign of arms recovery diligently. And, just out of fear that the CPM sponsored goons can again cause danger to the common people, the villagers and residents, often with Trinamool activists leading them, are taking this opportunity to collect in front of the houses and offices of CPM leaders/ activists/ goons and then requesting the local police for search and seizure of arms.  So far no incident of similar type has been reported where the CPM leaders have organised common people to force the police to search and seize arms from Triamool local offices and houses of Trinamool leaders/ activists/ goons.
The CPM has alleged that the Trinamool supporters are falsely implicating CPM party functionaries and activists by placing weapons into their offices and homes by force and then asking the policy to conduct search and seizure operations. It is now difficult for CPM to convince the common people that their allegations are often true rather than being false. People would tend to have a perception that the stock of illegal arms with CPM goons were much more than the other political party goons. In any case, the recovery of arms - from any place is important to the peace process, irrespective of whether these arms were in the possession of goons sponsored by party X or party Y.

Ideally, all parties should have themselves given out the exhaustive list of places/ persons where/ with whom they suspect illegal weapons are stocked to the Police and simultaneously publishing such lists in their websites. They are not yet prepared to do this as yet because they might be still hoping for the return of the earlier environment where they can use armed goons and mafias. It would have been the best policy for the CPM to weed out bad elements from the party  and in the process improve the image of the party. Rather, the leaders are planning deputations/ agitations to protect their party supporters from harassment by Trinamool in the name of arms recovery campaigns. Had they offered to recover the weapons from their goons and mafia themselves with police help, the other political parties would have been forced to follow suit. CPM leadership is wasting another opportunity to come out clean and bury the common perception of armed Harmmad teams sponsored and protected by them once for all. By not taking a vigorous proactive step of voluntarily recovering arms from the houses of their own goons/ mafias/ activists and their offices, CPM is only risking greater damage to the image of the party.
In the meanwhile, the new legislative assembly must pass a new bill on recovery of illegal arms from political party offices and political party members' residences, making it obligatory to register all offices and members addresses with the police with proper proof and evidence and announce the name of the occupier of party offices who can be charge-sheeting in case of illegal stocking of arms in the party offices.
Peace does not come from the skies: political parties need to commit to honest actions to eradicate those who pose danger to peace.

Fresh Air of Governance: Bengal Kurushetra Phase 17

Sanjay: Maharaj, the first non-communist, left government has taken office in West Bengal.
Maharaja: I know that the people were glued to the TV on 13 May from 9 AM to midnight when the portfolios of new ministers were announced. Great show. Now I appreciate what you sang 3 months back and I was very annoyed then.

Sanjay: What song did annoy you?
Maharaja: Yes, you sang something like this:
'Aajee Bongodesher Paschimete A Key Ashonee
Kothaa Hothey Udoy Holen Mamata Ramani,
Ogo Marks Tomar Budhha Biman Key Jay Koray.
Tomar Baam Kaanpay Ghaspooler Santraashay Poray.,
Ogo Marx Tomar Doorgo Ebbar Bhenge Na Poray!.
I was annoyed because you suggested the downfall of my communist comrades.
Maharaj: But some of my communists friends liked my use of words like Ashoni and Santrash while referring to Trinamool. My anti-communist friends had remarked tat it was a good attempt to make a parody of a Tagore song on Bengal.

Maharaja: Yes,  they might not have noticed the underlying direction of your parody and enjoyed the entertainment part. But today I realize that you were trying to capture the direction of the Kurushetra. I guess you would now have a new parody to sing.
Sanjay: Yes, Sir. The 13th May TV shows and live reports led me to modify the parody:
'Aajee Bongodesher Hridoy Jeetay Mamata Romonee,
Didi Saee MukhyoMantri Roopay Asheen Holay Aaponee.
Ogo Marks Tomar Buddho Bimaan Laajay Naa Moray.
Tomaar Doorgo Ebaar Bhanglo Jobay Mamata Jhoray.
Ogo Marx Tomar Mathaa Khutay Baam Naa Moray.
Daan Haathay Taar Kajayer Nishan, Baa Haath Bhulay Baam Kirton
Dooee Chaonay Drooto Gati Chotaay Aamlaa Mahakaron.
Ogo Marx Tomar Bhakto Mookhay Kothaa Naa Soray.'

Maharaja: What do you want to suggest now with this new parody?
Sanjay: In the next six months will see a new battle of wits between Mamata with her extraordinary pace and chasing and the sleeping Bengali 'Hocchay Hobay' work culture of 60 months for a year. The other battle would be between Mamata's agile determination to sweep out all illegitimate weapons and the communist need to replenish the stocks in their secret armouries and garrisons for the future proletariat's armed revolution against the stooges of capitalism. Your communist comrades could not stage a come back through democratic process and they cannot just rely on democratic process waiting for Mamata's failures to accumulate: now they have no alternative but to usher in the armed revolution to regaining power of the State. It is very difficult at this stage to predict when and how the communists would get frustrated enough to start their fight again.

Mahabharata: How are the followers of the communists behaving.?
Sanjay: They are currently keeping a low key profile, avoiding confrontation in public and hoping that the leaders will show the way sooner than later. The leaders are willing to wait for suitable conditions to arise to lunch their offensive. They hope that these conditions will appear soon.
Maharaja: How will such conditions arise?

Sanjay: The seeds of Bengali reversal (resistance) from Path of Change (Parivartan) that Mamata wishes to tread are already there in Bengali characteristics. Just wait for a while to see how Mamata's ministers become sick unable to work such long hours week after week and year after year. This together with the lazy bureaucracy and the general govt. employees will realize that Mamata is treading a path of huge toil and personal sacrifices. As they fail to keep pace with Mamata, she will become progressively frustrated and all the more step again and again on the accelerators. This will result in failure to deliver what Mamata promised and continue to promise to radically change the face of West Bengal. As failures become perceptible and the Mamata's own people and the bureaucracy starts falling sick, the communists will get their new opportunity to win over more and more people. Mamata will then face weakening base of support for change that forces people to work hard with agility and competence on a sustained basis with commitment and personal sacrifices. Bengalis are not used to this. And, the conflict between the hurricane like pace at which Mamata wants and needs to work for installing change and the Bengali culture and work infrastructure was apparent on the very first day of Mamata's government. She commented on the infrastructure at the Secretariat. She also said that she will value effectiveness of work performance from government employees irrespective of the political colour of individuals.

Maharaja: You are raising hopes for my communist comrades.
Sanjay: No, sir. I am not raising any hope. I am just pointing out the opportunities that your comrades are banking upon to come after the initial euphoria over the installation of the new government dies down.
Maharaja: So, this Kurushetra will not be able to achieve the results that the people desired.

Sanjay: That is just one possibility of the current revolution through ballot boxes failing. But I must also point out the other possibility. Mamata has grown in her leadership effectiveness over the years. Her exposure to administration and dealing with cabinet colleagues, bureaucrats, party workers and the public has been qualitatively far better than all of your communist comrades. She has worked under four different Prime Ministers. And, she is a great learners. Her intelligent quotient and emotional quotient are strong. She personally works with very high missionary zeal that is highly contagious, communicable, contractable, transmittable and transmissible, especially among the younger people. So, Mamata may be successful quick time to get the crucial minimum critical mass of competent, agile, diligent and supportive cabinet colleagues, party workers and activists, bureaucrats, government employees and advisors. Once this critical mass develops, it would be difficult to stop Mamata on her path of bringing about the required change in work culture, work attitude that is capable of delivering performance and results expected by the people at large.

Maharaja: If this second possibility has a strong chance of materialising, what should mu communist comrades must do now?
Sanjay: Last time you had already mentioned what they are supposed to do now: publicly admit their misdeeds, deficiency, ignorance, incompetence and gross failure in performance. Second, get real exposure to what is happening in the country elsewhere and in the World outside so as to get out of the frog-in-the-well syndrome and adopt a broader perspective that enables them to embrace change before changes destroy them, Third, gather competence, capability to work harder for productive results for the people. If Mamata succeeds in her mission of radical change for West Bengal, your communist comrades will need to substantially upgrade them in terms intellectual, professional, work productivity and effectiveness to match the requirements of the emerging world-wide environment instead of remaining confined to narrow world of interpreting and getting succour from Marx and Marxist literature and remaining opportunistic to grab State powers to abuse them for the party's benefit. and fool the people by throwing crumbs at them here and there.

Maharaja: After the Election Kurushetra War, peace must have returned. Has the Shati Parva in MahaBangla begun?
Sanjay: We shall take up this subject in our next session, Maharaja, if you so permt.
Maharaja: Okay, Sanjay.

War Ends Hoping Return of Democracy: Bengal Kurushetra Phase 16

Sanjay: Maharaja, the War has come to an end with the Election Commission announcing the winners for each of the 294 constituencies. I hope you could enjoy the entertainment that the TV channels provided throughout the day on 13th May.
Maharaja: Yes, I did enjoy the entertainment. Thanks you for the medicines you gave me on the previous evening. I realise that unless one rids oneself of expectations and emotional attachment, one cannot really enjoy the entertainment that elections generate. You helped me. Thanks again. But I am sorry for the communist comrades who could muster only 63 wins as against 185 of Trinamool and 42 of their election alliance partner the Congress.  They seemed to have been shocked by the thumping drubbing by the voters and never had imagined that their dream of the Eighth successive Left-front Government shattered within 120 minutes of the counting of votes.
Sanjay: Yes, the Chief of Command, Buddhabev fell along with his stalwart Lieutnents like Nirupam Sen, Gautam Deb and Asim Dasgupta among 26 of his ministers who lost. 

Maharaja: My comrades should now try to learn lessons from the course of events and the impact of  responses to the emerging environment over the last decade and more.
Sanjay:  I am sure they will. They have accepted the peoples' verdict with humility and are going to review their electoral debacle, find out the reasons for their failure to get peoples' support and adopt corrective steps.
Maharaja: I am not so sure. I do not see them really prepared as yet to do all these with any seriousness. Their arrogance prevents them to accept the Truth. of their inherent failings, weaknesses and incompetence..
Sanjay: How do you say so?
Maharaja: Those who accept people's verdict against them do not shout on the roof top that they accept the peoples' verdict. Saying so is an insult to democracy because a political party in a democracy is supposed to have given up the right of not accepting the peoples' verdict. Of course if the party has reasons to believe that the elections were manipulated and rigged, they will say that the election has been rigged and manipulated  and hence the election results do not reflect the people's verdict. But this is not the case here. So, why they have to say that they are accepting the verdict? It reflects only a reflection of their arrogance .
Sanjay: Arrogance of stating that they are being kind enough to the people who have voted against them and for the rival party that has own.

Maharaja: The communist comrades continued arrogance is a disgrace to democracy. It also shows that the communists of Bengal are interested in using democracy only for their own interest: democracy by the dictates of the party, by the dictatorial coterie of the party leadership and for the party to decide what is good for the party if it is in power and democracy of violent agitation by the opposition party for sabotaging the interest of the country. They do not want and, capable of, violent revolution to usher in communist era but willing to manipulate democracy to establish communist dictatorship by winning political elections.

Sanjay: But they say that they believe in inner party democracy and will find out what went wrong that there was a poor response to the voters to their campaigns.
Maharaja: That is the standard methodology of the communists to tell the people that the people have acted foolishly by voting Mamata's Trinamool to power with close to 80% majority for their alliance..
Sanjay: But they are arranging for assessment of the feedback on the causes of their defeat from all districts of West Bengal and deliberate on the most important reasons for their failure.
Maharaja: That is a hoax. They  will do all these drama and then produce an assessment note that would be leaked to the press and publicised by their own papers like Ganasakti. Everyone knows what they are going to say in their assessment.
Sanjay: How do you know what they are going to say in regard to their great beating?
Maharaja: If you are trained in Marxism, you know how to explain anything that happened, happens and will happen. There is a standard communist software program for that: you just have to add currently usable English along with the spice of Marxist jargon. Just note what they are going to say.
1. We have lost because only a 48% part of those who voted for the Evil forces: 42% of the voters wanted the communists to come back. The new voters were about 10% of the population with whom they somehow missed to communicate with and some voters from minority community and the women were fooled by the Trinamool Congress led by a cunning woman without any useful education and culture, the communists lost 8% of the votes. If they had got these votes, they would have won the majority of the seats with 50% share of votes.
2. These 8% of the voters really did not understand what they were doing: they got influenced by clever marketing of the conniving evil forces of Trinamool and Congress using large scale black money to allure voters by false propaganda. The party machinery tried its best to overcome this false propaganda against the communists by using most of the print and electronic media. The evil forces also killed the grass-root level communist workers in large numbers through violence.
3. The false propaganda led to a incorrect interpretation of the communist ideals, ideology, policies and performance. The people could not understand the good things they had done by distributing 1.3 lakh acre of land to the landless farmers, by trying to bring Tata's Nano Car project and foreign investment led chemical hub as a part of the communist strategy of resurgence of industry in West Bengal., by their use of the combined forces of police and harmad forces to drive away the Maoist terrorists, by their pro-poor policies to make West Bengal one among the Indian states leading in terms of per capita GDP growth, provision of health and education facilities to the children of West Bengal and expansion of road and housing infrastructure, by their withdrawal of support to the UPA-1 government to keep the dreaded, capitalist suckers like the America at bay.

Sanjay: You are right. They have been saying all this over the last several months. They believed that people were not appreciating their good work because bulk of the voters were not fully aware, were misled by the Trinamool Congress and got lured away by black money and threat of violence. That is interesting analysis. but already known. Will there be any new highlights?

Maharaja: Yes, they are going to say that the Election Commission had turned a blind eye to various kinds of manipulation and poll regulation violations. They will say that because of 34 years in power, bad elements had crept into their parties, tarnishing their image in the minds of voters. But they are only and real friends of the people and have the competence to deliver good to the people. It is unfortunate that the people brought the evil to power and the people will soon realize this. Then the people will have to bring the comrades back into power. In any case they are not going to allow the winners to rule by opposing with all their might to stop them from pursuing anti-people policies that are causing and will cause inflation, unemployment, communal tensions, violence and all round sufferings to the people along with American exploitation. But all this are a joke for the people and a serious belief by the communists. 

Sanjay: So, they will continue with their Marxist jealousy, hatred with arrogance, vengeance and inciting violence.
Maharaja: That is what they will try. They are failing to realize that West Bengal is a small part of a Soverien Democratic State of India and that West Bengal is not a full-fledged State like Egypt or Libya where Mubarak and Gaddafi style repression of peoples' revolt is impossible to be organised by the ruling dictators. They are not correctly reading the current history and trends: they just will not be able to return to their old techniques of fooling the public as they could do half a century ago.

Sanjay: What do you recommend to your beloved communist comrades who failed miserably in a fair and free elections with close to 85% voter turnout.

Maharaja: It is high time they open clean up their ideals, ideological beliefs, and reluctance to see the Truth and Reality. They should shake themselves from day-dreams and night-mares and their addiction to snobery and first accept the facts that emerged over the last decade. They should admit that they have failed in so many ways because of their incompetence and arrogance:
1. They had pursued economic policies that delivered very little to the West Bengal's industrial and economic regeneration.
2. They had destroyed the State's finances with gross indiscipline and created a huge debt burden.
3. They had destroyed the quality and education in West Bengal with foolish experiments like banning English for primary education and systematically replacing top educationist talents in the management of education by those who are loyal to communists irrespective of their talent and competence.
4. They had been far from honest and were corrupt to the extreme by following nepotism and favouritism everywhere abusing the powers of the State.
5. They had made the Police forces subservient to the cause of the Party and made the police work as per the directions of their party functionaries at all levels.
6. They had developed and raised a cadre of armed goons to terrorise people and establish the rule of party functionaries in various localities and capable of  large -scale rigging elections in various dishonest and unfair methods ways so long as the Election Commission did not find out effective solutions to make it virtually impossible for them to continue their dishonesty.
7. They had failed to remove dishonest, corrupt people for the party and from the association of corrupt parties.
8. They had insulted and systematically discriminated against those who do not sympathise with or do not subscribe to Marxist ideologies.
9. They had wrongfully used physical force to repress farmers and others who opposed their policies and practices.
10. They had been arrogant enough not to admit their mistakes, failures and incompetence in different spheres of party activities and government administration.

Sanjay: That is a long list of embarrassing admissions.
Maharaja: The list would be longer. But I stopped at 10 because in any case the communist comrades are not at all trained to admitting their failures, weaknesses and incompetence. If they were, they would have made a list of 20 such points, deliberated in the meetings of their Committees and made their views public saying they plead guilty or otherwise on each of these points instead of beating around the bush and trying to say they have done better than other States and other political parties.

Sanjay: What do you think will happen if they do not do as you recommend.
Maharaja: They will increasingly lose relevance in West Bengal and Indian politics. If they do not substantially reform themselves, completely cleanse the party from arrogance, corruption, violence and manipulation, and do not substantially upgrade the analytical and empirical basis of the ideological perspective that would attract the Trust of the people who would prefer not to show alleigance to Marx, Lenin and Mao and those Indians who value individual freedom and liberty. My comrades will then struggle to exist by converting the communist parties into run-of-the-mill Indian political parties of the second tier behind the first tier parties like the BJP and the Congress. This is the writing on the Wall.

Sanjay: You mean they cannot hope to come back to power in West Bengal if they do not radically transform?
Maharaja: No. They can very well return to power. But they have to await serious failure in performance of the Trinamool and Mamata. And, in that case they will continue to be another political party of incompetence and dishonesty that they had been for the last two decades or so. The 2016 and 2020 Elections in West Bengal will not then be another Kurushetra between  the evil and the electorate but Shumbhu-Nishambhu war between two rival forces of Evil.

Sanjay: That means the Bengal Kurushetra has come to an end.
Maharaja: Yes, if Mamata fails to deliver what the majority of voters desired: not to have an incompetent, corrupt, oppressive and arrogant party to rule over Bengal and pull down Bengal in the League of Indian States that the communists have been successful at. We will know soon within 200 days at the earliest and 1000 days from 20th May 2011 - the beginning of the Phase 17 of the current Kurushetra War between the forces of Evil and the oppressed people at large who hoped Mamata will
deliver the Good.

Sweet Dreams Night Before Results' Morning: Bengal Kurushetra Phase 15

Maharaja: Sanjay, I have been suffering Nightmares for so many days now. This has started spoiling my day time also after the exit polls predicting disaster for my dear communist comrades and the consequential disaster that Bengal may face if the Trinamool-Congress combine starts ruling the State.
I need some strong medicine from your words today so that I can enjoy sweet dreams this last night before the election results start pouring; otherwise I won't be able to face the TV on the unlucky 13th morning.
Sanjay: Maharaja, you deserve a good night's sleep with sweet early morning dreams to give company to millions of Bengal residents glued to the TV as progress of counting are reported from various counting centers and the political analysts start interpreting the results.
Maharaja: So, now that there is ceasefire this evening, share with me a good, strong medicinal verbose to become happy even if for a night.
Sanjay: Sir, you have been too attached to your communist comrades because of your long association with them  You still have strong desire that the communists retain power in Bengal. That is why the unfavourable exit polls have affected your mind and body so adversely. You are not able to use your intellect correctly. You have not been able to keep your emotions under control. Fears are pulling you down. This has been happening to all Communists in Bengal, their supporters here and the their party colleagues dependent on West Bengal and Kerala to justify their existence. This is silly.
Maharaja: Why do you call this silly?
Sanjay: If you experience nightmares in apprehension of a communist defeat, it is silly. If your comrades say that the useless, probably motivated, exit poll results that have proved repeatedly wrong in the past, are being deliberately highlighted by the media to undermine the morale of the communists party members and supporters at the grass-root level, they are being silly. You people do not believe in God and yet are dedicated to the uplift of the believers, specially those among them who are economically poor. This is good. But you do not have to a believer to read, understand apply the principles of Gita. These may have been depicted as coming from the human incarnation of God, but these are manufactured by the best brains available at the time they were manufactured. The principles of Gita in the more non-religious, and, intellectually scientifically far more solid than Karl Marx's scribblings out of frustrations with the social order as prevailing at his time and drove him out of his native land.
Maharaja: Now do not criticise the only scientific, infallible theories of Marx in a round about fashion the way you are doing. It hurts us when you show Marx as inferior to some poet who grafted another poor poet's lecture into Mahabharata at the Kurushetra session.

Sanjay: Believe me Sir, I do not intend to hurt you. I am trying to get you out of the mental and intellectual disease that you created for yourself. Just listen carefully to me.
Maharaja: Okay. Go on.
Sanjay: You know that there is no way we can change the results that are going to come out tomorrow. These are already cast ballots contained in the single, secured database of each Electronic voting machine used in the elections. So, whether the communists or Mamata will win has already been decided: it is only that you do not know what these results precisely are. So, why should you lose sleep over what you cannot control or alter?
Maharaja: I should not but I am not able to do so.
Sanjay: Yes, this is not covered by Marx's writings. So better try to find out yourself. How long will you have the association with your dear communist comrades or Mamata? Not for long as you cannot avoid death. Why do you have to remain attached to the future of the communists?  Have such attachment has succeeded in stopping Soviet Russia from breaking up or the Chinese from exporting cheap goods to the USA to keep their labour employed, giving loans to the US to fight wars everywhere and support Pakistan in her attempts to organize terrorist attacks on India?
Maharaja: One day, the entire World will become communist.
Sanjay: Maybe. But one day the entire planned may get destroyed or human species may become extinct. So, why get attached to such one day salvation like the believers of God. Better give up such fairy tale dreams from your system. Look only at more shorter time horizons.
Maharaja: Okay. I give up.
Sanjay: Fine. Now you automatically give up your attachment to communism or the communists.
Maharaja: How? I do not give up my attachment.?
Sanjay: You will still continue to dream that the communists will rule Bengal for ever? Why? at least of 40%-49% of the people in West Bengal always voted against the communists. You do not have any feeling for these people? Are they not your countrymen and human beings?
Maharaja: Yes, they are also my loved ones. Their hears should also be won over by my communists comrades.
Sanjay: That is good. But do the communists have to win over all your countrymen by being in the power to rule them?
Maharaja: No. But if they are in power it helps to bring benefits to poor people and win them over.
Sanjay: How significant is the percentage of population your comrades have been able to win over in 34 years? Have not poor people complained of suffering from your comrade's rule? Are you not aware of communist mastans and their protege businessmen/ women families taking over land from poor farmers in Rajarhat, Singur, Nandigram and oppressing people elsewhere.
Sanjay: Yes, I am aware. But if your are in power such things happen here and there. You should ignore such things in a broader perspective.
Maharaja: You are not blind merely because you cannot see through your eyes. You have mde yourself blind intellectually and mentally to ignore such atrocities on the poor. How can you ignore the State helping a rich Hindu father interven in the lives of an young family of his daughter legally married to a Muslim boy who after severe harrasment meted out to him was found dead along the Railway track. Do you see this as part of your Communist vision as such things happen?
Maharaja: No, this is bad. o communist can allows such things to happen whether in power or not. My comrades failed to protect the young couples because they were in power and did not care about such stray incidents. It is not correct.
Sanjay: So, if the communist comrades are out of power for some period after enjoying power for 34 years in a row, why should you be worried? Cannot communists do good while being out of office? Cannot they do their cleansing (Sudhhikaran) by staying out of power volantarily for some years?
Maharaja: Yes, they can and probably should. Power has been both used and abused in 34 years. Abuse of power is a malignent disease. Comrades should go for radiation therapy and surgery by being in the hospital that they do not have control - that is remaining out of the powers of the State.
Sanjay: So, you are no longer concerned with your comrades losing power as you love all poor people who still uffer and needs to be won over without the use of State power.
Maharaja: Absolutely, I am comfortable with these thoughts at least for now. I am feeling better.
Sanjay: Now, you must get the last dose of the medicine to get fully liberated to enjoy your TV entertainment tomorrow.
Maharaja: Give me the last dose before I get into sleep.
Sanjay: Sure, Your Excellency. Look thes exit polls however scientific are most prone to wide errors. So, you do not believe in them: they are as good as your  comrades's enemies' wild guesses, camofouging their day dreams and mediacreated hypes. They become true once in a while by fluke, not because of their scientific methods.
Maharaja: But all the seven exit polls predict Mamata's win and the other one is unsure about who will win.
Sanjay: All are exit polls and all are subject to the same problem of measurement/ observation and sampling errors that makes it virtually impossible to find the Truth. There are many factors that may make the pollcaster wrong this time. The percentage of voting has been significantly higher this time, especially if we take into account that incidence of false voting, voter entry barriers and other forms manipulations and rigging has been considerable reduced. The nwely enrolled voters form about 10% of the electorate. The women voters have cast more votes this time. Your comrades have after a long time done a serious job of contacting voters and soliciting votes. The voters committed to communists did not take any chances by satying away from the polling booths.
Maharaja: What does all this mean?
Sanjay: All this means that exit poll under the radically different circumstances will lead to forcast results that can be wide off the actual results. Most important, there was a strong Mamata Wave, but the way this has been hyped by the media, could lead to a different pattern of lying in interviews than in the past. When there is strong hype, many people lie to hide the fact of their going against the wind. In which way the samples has got biassed is impossible to guess and even know later. So, there is no reason to believe any of these forcasts being accurate just because most of them forecast simmilar results.
Maharaja: That is a great comfort. I am now fully cured. I can now have a good night's sleep, have a quota of sweet dreams, no nightmares and enjoy the TV entertainment as an unbiassed viewer.
Sanjay: Good night Sir. All the best for the 13th May.
Maharaja: Gunit.

Exit Polls Defeats Communists: Bengal Kurushetra Phase 14

Maharaja: What happened in the Final Sixth Round polling, Sanjay?
Sanjay: The polling in 14 constituencies supervised Election Commission's officials with security support of 35 central and state government security police personnel for each voter has confirmed the success of the Election Commission to ensure a free and fair democratic election in a by and large peaceful environment in West Bengal for the first time in two decades, if not for the first time in five decades. Between 1960-1977, the Congress and Naxal-Maoists could not allow Bengal to exercise their voting rights freely and fairly without fear and from the eighties to the first decade of the second millennium, the communists would rig the elections and drive non-loyal voters out of electoral rolls  and polling booths through a reign of sponsored terrorism. As far as elections are concerned, the hero of this election in 2011 is the Election Commission: they have given a sea burial to the political forces that developed the science and art of capturing votes and voters by mafia power - I hope these forces and practices have met their grave in the Bay of Bengal - never to return again.

Maharaja: Sanjay, you are a novice. Political wars has and will always be the bed rock of all unfair means, manipulation, falsehood and brutality: there is nothing unfair and foul play in Wars. Elections are political wars. This time the Election Commission has outwitted the politicians and the election result manipulators - but next time they are likely to be outwitted - the desire to win elections is so strong that wits flock to politicians to help them win the elections by hook and crook. You stop your lecture on democracy and let me the progress of the Kurushetra War. Do exit polls show any hope for my dear communists?

Sanjay: Yes, Sir. There is lot of hope. First. results of exit polls conducted in 9 districts by 24 Ghanta Bengali News channel that has 100% of the market share of communist viewer segment (probably, even Ganasaktui, the commuists' popular daily is yet to reach 100% readership in the communist-readership market segment), shows that 47 would go to the communists, 38 would be bagged by Trinamool- Congress combine, 3 to others and in the remaining 11 the exit poll does not indicate a clear winner. Thus, if the 9 districts' 99 seats are any indicator, we can hope that the communists will definitely bag 141 seats and the Trinamool Congress combine 114. Of the 30 or so seats where the exit polls may not indicate clear winners, the communists need to be lucky to win only injust7 seats to get majority. This shows that the communists can really retain power, even with a rajor edge majority.
Maharaja: What about other exit polls?

Sanjay: Before those, Maharaja, you must know what Gautam Deb the main TV face of the communists had said about such opinion polls and exit polls. Having described the performance of the Election Commission as 'Mor or less, Well Done', he has said that he believed that exit polls are scientific bu often their predictions are wrong. So, this applied science is not really credible. And most importantly he continued to believe that the communists would get majority in the West Bengal Assembly for the eighth time in a row.

Maharaja: That is good. But does he not think the 24 Ghanta exit polls credible even though they are scientific?
Sanjay: Probably, he does not think that the exit polls have a reasonable enough probability of proving correct: because often they have not found to be wide off the actual results by big margins. So, maybe he thinks that the communists would exceed majority by a big margin wining in total close to 170 seats out of the 294.
Maharaja: That's great. Do you think there is any chance of Gautam Deb going wrong and the communists failing to retain majority?

Sanjay: No, Sir, I am most incompetent to judge the chance of Gautam Deb going wrong in expecting the communists retaining majority. But as many as seven exit polls (other than the incomplete 24 Ghata one) predicts the failure of the communists to retain power, The maximum that these polls give seats to the communists is 122 and the minimum 57, the average being 76 or so. So, there is no chance  according to the seven exit polls for an eighth communist dominated government in West Bengal.. So, if you want to calculate the chances of Gautam Deb being correct, given that there are two possibilities, the a priority probability is 50%. Now you can adjust the a priori probability in the light of additional information available from these exit polls, the chances reduces to say about 16%.

Maharaja: That is a fairly low chance.
Sanjay: Yes, Sir. Fairly low chance. But an event with a low chance of 1% does take place over repeated trials. And, it may happen in the first trial itself. So, hope for the best for the communists but prepare for the Worst.

Maharaja: But what does the exit polls talk about Trinamool?
Sanjay:Four of the exit polls predicts seats for Trinamool as follows: 128, 152, 180 and 181 that gives an average of 160 - absolute majority by a decent margin to form government on its own. If you take all the seven exit polls, the Trinamool-Congress combine should get a minimum of 187 and a maximum of 225  - roughly two-thirds to fur-fifths majority).
Maharaja: That's a sweeping out of the communists, my God!

Sanjay: Yes, the probability of that happening may also be low.
Maharaja: Who will then lead the communists?
Sanjay: Maybe all the leaders will win but the followers would desert or become inactive. Exit polls show. Buddhadev Bhattacharya may lose ad so will Asim Dasgupta and Nirupam Sen. According to one poll Gautam Deb will scape through, according another he might lose by a small margin. But, why Sir, do you worry about which leader will win or which will win. In just 72 hours from now, we will know the final results. Just hold on and enjoy the entertainment on the TV about the relevance of communists in India, with exit polls showing the communists defeat in Kerala.

Fight Ends for Ballots, Begins Over Likely Results: Bengal Election's Unlucky Phase Thirteen

Sanjay: Maharaja:, the Round 5 polling for 38 battle constituencies is over. The fight for ballots for the remaining remaining 14 fronts in the Maoist infiltrated forest areas is also over - the people here will cast their votes on Tuesday 10 May.
Maharaja: How many of the 280 battles have been won by the communists? Any idea?
Sanjay: The exit polls would be available from all TV channels and newspapers, except perhaps those owned or working for the communists, who are yet to indicate their firm program on exit poll result release. All others will be releasing the likely results on May 10 evening. May 11 & 12 are listed for entertainment on discussions on the likely results predicted by exit polls. This is the most difficult period for the politicians if they are not sure of what the actual ballot counting will reveal and yet have to justify why they think that their parries will get majority and how much more than the rivals. And, within a day, the final outcome would be available to show how good the politicians has been in forecasting the peoples' verdict.

Maharaja: So, you mean to say that we cannot get any idea till the exit polls are released on 10th evening/
Sanjay: No Sir. You can get an idea now about what the exit polls are likely to reveal.
Maharaja: How do you get such an idea? What is your source?
Sanjay: Sir, my sources are the newspapers and TV channels - the have started quoting assessment of different political parties. Thee may not be authentic but based on leaks by party officials.

Maharaja: Let's get the different so-called political party field assessments.
Sanjay: There are three versions as usual: Conservative, Optimistic and Surprising. And, there are two sources of assessments: Communists and Congress-Trinamool combine. I have a suspicion however that politicians may have taken into account the glimpse's of exit poll result secrets they could privately access.
Maharaja: Just tell me the numbers now.

Sanjay: First, the Communists' assessment. The conservatively estimate that they would get 152 seats - just 4 more than necessary to get majority to form Government. The communists are optimistic of getting 170 seats. And they would be surprised if they fail to get less than 230 seats.
Maharaja: Good show. Now about the Rivals'  assessment:

Sanjay: The rivals have an optimistic projection of 252 if the Mamata Wave had been really strong among women voters, Muslim voters particularly in the 24 Parganas and the Singur-type pockets in Midnapore, and among the new entrants to the electoral rolls.  Their conservative estimate is that they will win 230 seats. They would be surprised if they win less that 200 seats and Trinamool alone wins less than 170.

Maharaja: Who would get surprised? I think there is a possibility that all will be surprised: say the communists get 130, Trinamool gets 145 and Congress gets 19. Then, the communists can still be in effective power.

Sanjay: You can get your surprise in just 4 days. Please be a petient, Maharaja:
Maharaja: What about the charges of black money use, the impending rise if gas and fuel prices, continued high inflation rate, etc? Are these not going to hurt the rivals of the communists?
Maharaja: Yes, Sir. All these and other factors have worked hemselves out.  Current assessments are just the feeling of the politicians about what the voters have done. Voters may not have revealed the whole Truth that would be known only on May 13. But that may not be the end of the Bengal Kurushetra.

Tensed Nerves: Bengal Kurushetra Phase Twelve

Maharaja: I understand that the communists are certain to win after the 4th Round polls.
Sanjay: Yes Sir, the Chief Commander of the Communist Forces has declared that the Communists' retention of power in Bengal is now an absolute certainty as they would have by now won the requisite number of constituencies.

Maharaja: That is good news. Buddha would not have said something like this unless he was fully sure. He must have had private access to exit polls of the first four rounds of polling.
Sanjay: Maybe. I am not sure. Because Anandabazar Patrika has published  newstof Mamata has already finalized the colleagues she would have in the Cabinet and preparing for oath-taking ceremony at the Brigade Parade ground on 18th May - 5 days after the results are declared by the Election Commission.
Maharaja: How is that possible? Communists would get the majority and Mamata will take oath with her Trinamool colleagues!

Sanjay: You are correct Sir. This is impossible. So, the communists have said that the news is essentially an advertisement sponsored by Mamata's Trinamool Congress using black money to influence the voters in the final two rounds of polling in about 54 constituencies. They have alleged that the publication of this news by Anandabazar Patrika  is a violation of the orders of the Election Commission banning publication of exit poll results before all the 6 rounds of polling is over. They have lodged a complaint to the Election Commission.
Maharaja: They have done the right thing.

Sanjay: Yes. But Mamata's Trinamool Congress have also complained to the  Election Commission that publication of the news may hurt the interests of the  Trinamool Congress adversely. This list of ministers of Mamata as reported in the news reveals that the backward classes, the North Bengal MLAs have not been represented in Mamata's likely cabinet. She has said that her party has not discussed the issue of  cabinet job allocation as yet and would be done only after her party is invited to form the Government.
Maharaja: This is entirely funny. What's going on, Sanjay?
Sanjay: Sir, tensions go up too much if the process of casting votes takes place in as many as 6rounds spread over two weeks. It seems to be a six-day cricket test match which  is too long a period to cope with in these days of one-day 50-0vers each side cricket match completed in seven - eight hours or 20-20 cricket tournaments where each match is over is over in four hours. Today players need to win or lose on every-day of the contest between bat and ball. There should have been exist poll results available after each round. In the absence of such result-oriented schedule, two weeks' of electron campaigning amidst intermittent constituency vote-casting battles is too tiring and boring resulting in nervous tensions for all including the journalists.

Maharaja: But why should the journalists do such reporting about cabinet formation even before all the rounds of polling is over?
Sanjay: Sir, imagine how boring it is to report the same things repeatedly about the response to election meetings of various leaders and the voter enthusiasm and turnout on the six different polling days. Just read, Sambad Pratidin and Bartaman reporting voters response to Mamata's rallies for the two weeks and Ganasakti reporting on the response of voters in campaign meetings of Buddhadev and Gautam Deb. These are so repetitive and monotonous composition and reporting.  The journalists like diversity and like to be innovative in delivering food cooked under different recipes to entertain the readers of newspapers and viewers of TV news channels.
 Maharaja: So, they decide to create news about possible faces in Mamata's Cabinet that may not come into reality! This is unfair!
Sanjay: No sir, this is really not unfair. The Ganasakti should have come out with a story on Buddhadev's new likely cabinet on the same day.
Maharaja: Ganasakti could not have done this because it is the communist party's own organ.

Sanjay: They could if they were innovative enough. Besides, the idea should have stuck Gautam Deb: he could have planted an idea in other news \paoers and TV channels like 24 Ghata or Akash Barta. The journalist would have cooked up a nice story about Buddhadev's next cabinet quoting unnamed reliable sources. The communists seem to be week in innovative communication: they had only been strong in using muscle power, captive police and various election rigging methods that were effective before the Election Commission outsmarted them this time.

Maharaja: I understand the journalists and media industry's need to innovate to keep their customers' interest in what they serve as news and the form in which serve. But why should seasoned politicians of the communists who have been in power for 34 years continuously?

Sanjay: Of the 34 years, 33 years were more or less the same. But this last one year has been different.  The communists have not been popular among close to 50% of the voters.  They have never tried to be popular with 75%  of the population. Their strategy has been to minimise the share of voters the party needed and the percentage share of votes and yet win as many constituencies as you can by minimizing the  percentage seats that the combined opposition can get. Such a strategy is considered optimal because the larger is the percentage share of the electorate you want in one's favour, the greater is the problem of sharing the benefits of power of ruling and lower is the scope for exploiting people whom you need not depend.

Maharaja: How were they implementing this strategy?
Sanjay: To implement this strategy effectively, one just needed to follow the following tactics: (a) keep the opposition divided and play one part of the opposition against the other, if necessary by sharing some small benefits with select individuals in the opposition - this group of individuals are often referred to as B team of the communists, a team that would always keep the opposition divided and weak in exchange of the small benefits they get from the ruling communists, (b) build up a reserve force f mafia that would in exchange of monetary benefits and protection from police intervention capture territories for the communists by scaring away any group of people from opposing the communists in their exploitation business, scaring voters away from the booths through terror threats in various localities, manipulate the preparation of electoral rolls by removing the names of voters they do not trust, including fictious names in the rolls, capture polling booths for large scale casting of votes by their cadres and by adopting other methods of election rigging. The more intensely one can do all these, the more is the likelihood of getting majority wins in the elections.  So, even if one can have 30% the voters with you, you can win the majority of the seats.

Maharaja: So, why should tensions arise now in the minds of the communists?
Sanjay: This time, a part of the mafia who were no longer getting adequate remuneration/ compensation from the communists because of the growing number of such mafia men to be accommodated became anti-communists. They joined the Congress or the Trinamool Congress or the Congress just to  take revenge even if they do not get befits by supporting these parties. They knew how the polls are rigged and a also how to counter such rigging. So, the communists were no more sure of success in achieving their basic strategy, especially because the Electron Commission had become more smart at countering election terror rigging methods of political parties. So, this time the communists needed to more percentage share of voters with them than in the past. Whether this is working out in the favor or not was not becoming evident after each round of polling. That was causing tensions to increase: communists have long forgotten to live with uncertainty. At this fag end of the polling, they are worrying about things they never did in the past. For example, the latest episode of  the offer they claim they have received for Electronic Voting Machine Software manipulation in their favour!

Maharaja: What is this EVM Software manipulation proposal they have received?
Sanjay: It seems that one of the communist battle warrior chieftain received a telephone call where the caller suggested that if the communists pay him some good amount of money, he can manipulate the software in the EVM machines such that irrespective of which buttons the voters push to cast their votes, five out of ten votes will berecorded in favour of the communists and the remaining five randomly distributed among other party candidates.This would ensure assured win for the communists. The communists have lodged a complaint with the Election Commission which it seems to be investigating into this.
Maharaja: But is such software manipulation possible?

Sanjay: Do not worry about what is possible or not for the present Sir. Why is it that the communists received such a proposal after fur rounds of polls involving 242 constituencies is already over and only 52 constituencies are awaiting polls? Why didthe offer not come earlier? Did the offer come to other parties earlier and they used black money to get into such a deal and then ran out of money for these 52 constituencies? How is that this EVM software manipulation product was not marketed in other states that had polls in the month of  April? 
Maharaja:  The communists must have sought answers to this before complaining. They are giving an impression of their being novices in electionering.

Sanjay: Yes, Maharaja. There were more questions to bepondered about. How does one ensures that the proposed caller and his team of EVM software manipulation estalish their credentials to convince the buyer of their winning game help so that the monies can be paid.  How is it that only a particular communist received this proposal over phone? Say, tomorrow the Trinamool Congress complains that they had received telephone calls from a strager proposing that the callers team can hack the EVM records containing the vote counting already done in the previous four rounds and kept under lock and key by the Election Commission and manipulate the votes already cast all in favour of the Trinamool candidates?

Maharaja: I understand what yu are hinting at. The communists are so tensed that they are worried that votes in all the rounds were or are being manipulated against them through software hackers linked to the people inside the Election Commission. It may be a reflection of some extraordinary level of jittery among the communist warriors. But, Sanjay, you have given big lecture on the tensed nerves of  the communists. I want to know the implications of all that you have said in more concrete terms.

Sanjay: Sure Maharajs: I will make efforts to meet your requirement. The communist knew that over the years they have developed a strong addiction to vote only for the communists among 30% of the people. But over the years, they have allowed many voters to become loyal anti-communists - these people have suffered the most under the communist rule. This section may now constitute about 35% who will not vote for the communists. So, election campaign is now meant for 40% of the voters. Of this 15% would not turn up at the polling stations. Thus the real issue of the remaining 25% of the voters. Rigging could have ensured that 15% of this gets clicked in favour of the communists. But this time rigging does not seem to be working out. So, uncertainty has increased. This is causing tensions.

Maharaja: But tensions are bad.While you are engaged in a War, you must be absolutely cool.
Sanjay: You are right Sir. But it is difficult. And, therefore tensions lead to bad actions and that in turn cause further worries and tensions. For example, you bring allegations of using black money against you and the same allegations get inflicted on you. You use abusive language because of tensions that lead to widespread protests through newspapers and that causes more tension in your mind about losing votes. Your cadres in the process start loose talks about throwing out useless leaders after the elections. These lose words get picked up by the media to spin new damaging stories. That in turn leads to worries and further loose talks. Your tensions increase all the more. This seems to be happening to your communist friends, Maharaja, Sir.

Maharaja: But the same tensions should emerge among the Trinamool and the Congress parties.
Sanjay: Surely. All parties are afflicted by this problem of keeping themselves free from tensions. But, this is happening for the first time to your communist friends.

Maharaja: So, I should not worry about this tension factor. This by itself would not alter the outcome of the War.
Sanjay: You are right Sir. These tensions and actions and reactions under tensions are a source of entertainment for the voters and us. We should enjoy these. We are entitled to our entertainment and should not let them go waste thinking about consequences of these tension-filled action-reaction War.

Maharaja: I agree with you Sanjay. I now see the actions of Mamata, Buddhadev, Gautam Deb and the different political parties in a different perspective. They are doing their jobs as they capable off given their inherent properties and tendencies including tension-prone nerves. We are to entertain us witnessing what they are doing. After all, the outcome of the War is not in our or their hands, whether you get Gautama Buddha's preaching of love and pace or Mamata's love and affection or both in certain measure.

Mid-war Winners: Bengal Election Kurushetra Phase Eleven

Maharaja: Sanjay, the War cries seem to be dying down.

Sanjay: Right Sir, the rival parties seem to have lost interest half the way in continuing the fights and battles. CPM has declared itself a winner after the third round of polls were over with ballot boxes of 179 constituencies sealed and packed for opening, scrutiny and counting on May 13. Mamata has been even bolder: she says the communists may at best get 20 seats out of 179 and with the remaining 159 seats with her alliance, her Trinamool Congress had already reached the magic figure of majority with 148 out of 294 total number of seats.She is now rallying to get two-thirds majority with the completion of the 4th Round polls on May 13 in 63 seats of Southwester districts of Midnapore and three others.

Maharaja: What has happened to our communists? Ain't they trying hard to prove themselves right?
Sanjay: Yes, Sire. The are trying hard to prove they are right. The are certain now that they will be proved right at least in one of the following predictions:
(a) They will scrape through to majority to retain power despite all the rubbish of Mamata Wave and the Trinamool violence against their supporters: or,
(b) The Elections would prove to ba farce with the use of huge black money used by Trinamool party and the connivance of Trinamool Congress with the a section of the media (Anandabagar Group assisted by Pradidin Sambad and Bartaman patrika), the Capitalists and richer classes and of course the Americans: the bad days of the poor people would start again after 34 years.

Maharaja: Does this mean the communists are giving up?
Sanjay: No way Sire. Be assured that they are really fighting the hardest battles for the first time in last four decades. So far they enjoyed the traditional Bengali fashion of being leftist or communists and they had all the machinery to rig elections and the larger proportion of the violent Mafia besides them. This is the first time, some Bengalis have difficulty in accepting the communists as worthy of fashionable leftist support or being a party dedicated to the cause of the poor. This is the first time they have a divided Mafia in their support with rigging master-minds weakened by the more organised and crafty Election Commission that is certainly winning against all forces that hindered free and fair elections over the last 25 years. So the communists are really fighting like great and brave heroes this time and the mass of communist party addict Bengalis are after a long time turning out to booths to cast their votes for the communists. What the communist political leaders lack this time is the certainty of the rigging and an accurate assessment of Mamata wave, particularly among the women voters. So, they have to have both predictions ready in order to be proved correct.
Maharaja: So, what do you think? Do my loved communists have a chance to win?
Sanjay: Your Excellency, I have repeatedly said that I am not able to forecast. As a Bengali, I would be able to come up with interesting analysis to show you later that "I had told you so" whatever the final election results come out of May 13. But, more interesting things are happening this time and we would be able to enjoy as these things develop over time, even after the elections.

Maharaja: What are these interesting things?
Sanjay: Major leaders on both sides might be found as having flouted Election Commission rules and might be penalised, even jailed. Besides, Mamata's Trinamool Congress has to account for its sources and uses of funds. This in turn may require the communists to do so in a manner that passes the test of independent auditors scrutiny. This in turn might have repercussions all over India, in the context of large scamps and blck money generation - an issue in which the Courts have become actively vigilant.

Maharaja: The political system would have great problems then ad I am sure all parties would tend to combine secretly to stop all these. But my interest currently on the fate of my communist warriors and commanders. There is no way knowing whether they would be able to retain power or not?

Sanjay: The booth-return exit poll results cannot be known until May 10th evening. So you have to wait for a week or so to get an indication. This time except of the die-hard communist supporters and a small section of die-hard Mamata proteges, no one is revealing in whose favour they have presses the buttons of the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs). So, Maharaja: keep your fingers crossed and pray to Marx and Lenin at the land of pilgrimage for the communist baptism.

Maharaja: This is a Dharmayyuddh. The parties that stood for justice, fairness, freedom and development should win and those against these laudable objectives should lose.
Sanjay: You are absolutely right. Unfortunately, this time both the rival parties are standing firm on the laudable objectives. Voters have to find out which of the is more credible and dependable than others: or, just vote for a change if they are equally credible.