Lok Sabha Polls 2024 | Abhishek Banerjee faces high-stakes battle in Diamond Harbour

Diamond Harbour (WB): The Diamond Harbour poll battleground encapsulates an intense dynamic in West Bengal's political landscape where the TMC, led by its de facto number two Abhishek Banerjee, touts the seat as a 'model constituency' while the opposition paints it as a 'laboratory of violence'.

A victory with an enhanced margin compared to 2019 will surely bolster Banerjee's leadership credentials and consolidate his influence in the party at a time when sharp intra-party fractures have cost the TMC influential leaders like Tapas Roy and Arjun Singh ahead of the ensuing polls and ace organisers like Suvendu Adhikari three years ago, all to the BJP.

Nestled between Kolkata and the South 24 Parganas district, Diamond Harbour stands as a strategic stronghold for the Trinamool Congress. The stakes are high, with outcomes poised to influence both TMC's inner dynamics and West Bengal's politics at large in the days ahead.

Nephew to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, Abhishek at a poll rally gave a call for a victory surpassing his margins for the previous two terms.

"Abhishek Banerjee's continued success in Diamond Harbour will not only reinforce the TMC's dominance in the region but also enhance his stature within the party. A bigger victory margin would be a clear endorsement of his leadership and developmental vision," political analyst Biswanath Chakraborty said.

Abhishek's rise within the TMC has been marked by his acumen for drawing political strategies and ability to mobilize support, party insiders say. However, his elevation to the rank of party's general secretary in 2021 and his undeniably increasing influence in decision-making have aggravated friction with a section of senior leaders, they agree.

The electoral battle in Diamond Harbour this time is underscored by competing narratives.

The TMC, under Banerjee's leadership, is trying to promote Diamond Harbour as a "model constituency", a parliamentary segment that mirrors development and has made significant strides in infrastructure, healthcare, and education.

Trinamool highlights the effective implementation of various welfare schemes and development projects as evidence of good governance.

That narrative notwithstanding, TMC's development claims face scepticism from a significant section of voters influenced by the opposition's allegations of violence and malpractice.

"Diamond Harbour has seen unprecedented growth and development under Abhishek Banerjee's leadership. From improved roads and healthcare facilities to enhanced educational opportunities, our work speaks for itself. Our leader has vowed to make it a model constituency," Maheshtala TMC MLA Dulal Das told PTI.

Banerjee marked the start of his political ascendancy in 2014 when he won the Diamond Harbour seat with a vote share of over 40 per cent. And despite the murmurs of dissent within a section of leaders, Abhishek seems to have cemented his position ever since as a key determinant of the party's future.

In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, Banerjee strengthened his hold on Diamond Harbour, defeating BJP by a staggering margin of 3.2 lakh votes. The 2021 assembly elections further solidified TMC's dominance, with all seven assembly segments under the constituency falling under TMC's control.

The party also swept the subsequent 2023 rural polls in the area.

The upcoming election marks a three-way contest, with Banerjee's aspiration for a third term finding a challenge from CPI(M)’s Pratikur Rahaman and Abhijit Das of the BJP.

Both opposition parties paint a grim picture of violence and undemocratic practices as commonplace in the region and accuse the TMC of fostering a climate of fear, where political dissent is met with violent backlashes and electoral malpractices are rampant.

"The TMC is propagating a model of coercion and undemocratic practices. The way voters are being intimidated is unacceptable in a democracy. It is not a model for development but a laboratory of violence," said BJP's Abhijit Das.

The BJP had bagged 34 per cent of the total votes polled in the last election.

Locals allege that despite the welfare schemes they avail of, there is an overwhelming climate of fear perpetrated by the ruling dispensation.

"I have been a TMC supporter since its inception, but I have disassociated myself now. For the last few elections, I have not been able to cast my vote," Arun Mondal, a local, said.

Hashim Mollah, a resident of Budge Budge, said since Banerjee became MP of the area, the constituency has been getting "VIP status". "During the COVID period, services ranging from free tests and free ration to vaccination were ensured at doorsteps without a hassle," he said.

Established during the first Lok Sabha elections in 1952, Diamond Harbour encompasses seven assembly constituencies: Diamond Harbour, Falta, Satgachhia, Bishnupur, Maheshtala, Budge Budge, and Metiaburuz.

A bastion of the Left till 2004, it was snatched by the TMC in 2009.

In 2019, five years after registering himself as MP from the seat, Banerjee built on his success by bagging 56 per cent of vote share, leaving the BJP finishing a distant second with 33.5 per cent of votes.

The demographic composition of Diamond Harbour is made up of roughly 55 per cent Hindus and 35 per cent Muslims, with Scheduled Castes comprising 20.63 per cent and Scheduled Tribes (ST) a mere 0.18 per cent.

While rural areas constitute 49 per cent of the seat, urban areas make up for the remaining 51 per cent. TMC claims that Muslims have been voting en bloc for the party since 2009.

CPI(M)'s Patikur Rehman said both the TMC and the BJP are trying to polarize the polls. "They are trying to polarize elections on religious grounds. Our fight is not for caste or religion but for class," he said.

The constituency will go to polls in the seventh and final phase on June 1.