Deepa plays boudi & bahu card to connect with Priya turf

Krishnendu Bandyopadhyay & Subhro Maitra TNN
Raiganj: She is the bahu of Raiganj and a boudi (sister-in-law) to its people. Ailing Congress leader Priya Ranjan Das Munshi’s wife Deepa is going the extra mile to seek the blessings of her in-laws. Delimitation brought Kaliagunge, her in-laws’ place, from the Balurghat parliamentary seat to her Raiganj constituency. Deepa, who is said to have seldom visited her in-laws’, is now staying with them. “In election time, she is definitely a better bahu,” chuckles a senior district Congress leader. Besides, Kaliagunge has a strong Left base. Deepa is not merely the wife of Priya Ranjan, former PCC chief and Union information and broadcasting minister. She herself is a power centre in the Pradesh Congress. No surprise that in the traditional Congress bastion of Raiganj, she draws a lot of attention. “She is a good speaker, adept at striking the right emotional chord with the electorate,” says Bhabani Shankar Biswas of Raiganj. “The future of the state perhaps lies with boudi in the north and didi (Mamata) in south Bengal,” he adds. But the reality is that Boudi and Didi do not see eye to eye. Deepa and Mamata have publicly expressed their displeasure for each other. The Mahajot has not taken strong roots in Raiganj. Not that Deepa cares much about it, given that her constituency is an out-and-out Congress stronghold. In fact, she strongly opposed the alliance with Trinamool Congress but had to swallow the bitter pill when it came about, despite her resistance. Now, a former Trinamool MLA is a nagging concern for her. Abdul Karim Chowdhury — one time Trinamool North Dinajpur chief and eight-term MLA from Islampore — resigned from the party to contest the Raiganj parliamentary seat as an Independent. Islampore, which was previously part of the Darjeeling Lok Sabha constituency, is a new addition to Raiganj. Some Congress leaders say Chowdhury is contesting at Mamata’s behest just to spoil Boudi’s poll prospects, and that he would return to Trinamool after the election. Chowdhury has a major following in Islampore and says: “My workers have built a strong base in Raiganj in the past few years. I have been with Mamata Banerjee since the formation of Trinamool in 1999. In Raiganj, we had a good chance on our own and I cannot support Deepa Das Munshi as a Congress candidate.” To mitigate the Chowdhury effect, Deepa has organized a rally at Islampore, to be addressed by Rahul Gandhi. “Many Trinamool workers are with Abdul Karim Chowdhury. Former Congress minister Jainal Abedin has also been seen campaigning for him,” she said, exuding confidence one moment and concern the other. A celebrated theatre actress, oscillations from sorrow to joy, from despair to hope or from low-key to high-pitched rhetoric come easy to her. “Chowdhury’s candidacy is a blessing in disguise as it has left no room for complacency for us,” says a youth leader and a shadow of Boudi. She punctuates her speeches with ‘Priyada’, as Priya Ranjan Das Munshi is known to his supporters. “Last year, he got the best parliamentarian’s award. Today he is speechless, battling for life at a hospital,” Deepa pauses for a second and changes her tone. “I am only voicing his words, asking for your favour for him,” she says during a meeting at Narayanpur. She then goes on to dwell about Priyada’s contribution to the area, a long list that begins with rail-connectivity to Raiganj. “People of Raiganj had to travel to Malda to board a train to Kolkata. Now, they can even travel straight to Delhi from Raiganj,” she says. A man standing just behind her gives the cue for applause. Delimitation, Deepa says, has worked to her advantage. “We have a Congress-led zilla parishad. People of Raiganj love Priyada. A lot of CPM members have been joining Congress. People are sensing victory. But a part of my mind always lies in Apollo Hospital, Delhi. Every 10 days, I rush to Delhi just to see him. His illness makes me more resolute about winning,” says Deepa. This time, CPM fielded its North Dinajpur district secretary, Bireswar Lahiri, from Raiganj. Acting district secretary Subir Biswas says, “Congress is celebrating over some CPM people joining their party. But you will be surprised how many Congress people have joined CPM secretly. Congress has promised a lot, but delivered very little. People of Raiganj are fed up with Congress. I sense a landslide victory for Lahiri.”