Bengal Elections: CPI(M)’s Salim Tears Into ECI, TMC, BJP; Alleges ‘Collusion’

Kolkata: Communist Party of India (Marxist) state secretary, Mohd. Salim on Monday launched a scathing attack on the Trinamool Congress (TMC), the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), and the Election Commission of India (ECI), accusing them of colluding in what he described as a “systematic assault on Bengal’s democracy, culture, and constitutional fabric.” He was addressing a press conference at the Kolkata Press Club.

A Death in Islampur Sparks Outrage

Salim anchored his remarks around the recent killing of CPI(M) activist Noor Azam Alam in Islampur, North Dinajpur. Calling the murder “a political message delivered in broad daylight,” he alleged that the perpetrators were close associates of a senior TMC leader.

“Armoured vehicles are deployed, Central forces are on vigil, and yet a man has been killed. Neither the ECI nor the state government has taken a single step. So, what exactly is this machinery for?” he asked, questioning ECI’s role.

He further alleged that the creation of the Islampur police district was not for law and order but to facilitate “illegal land grabs and criminal activity under political patronage.”

Voter List ‘Manipulation’

Turning to the electoral processes, Salim accused the ECI of “unethical and targeted” deletions from voter rolls, disenfranchising thousands of genuine voters while leaving the names of deceased individuals intact.

“The Special Intensive Revision (SIR) has become an instrument of manipulation,” he said, adding that the exercise had forced ordinary citizens into queues once again after a questionable delimitation process. He also pointed to recent corruption scandals, remarking: “Black money has not been unearthed. What has been unearthed are bundles of currency notes from a state minister’s girlfriend’s residence.”

Fifteen Years of ‘Misrule’

Framing the election under the CPI(M)’s slogan of Save Bengal, Salim accused the TMC government of hollowing out the state’s institutions. “Bengal’s politics, culture, and education have been brought to the verge of collapse,” he said. He charged that the ruling party (TMC) had outsourced governance to IPAC, an election management firm, which, he alleged, was engineering defections in rival parties.

“The police have been weaponised against democracy itself. You cannot erase Bengal’s culture simply by painting the state blue and white,” Salim said.

Communal Polarisation and Its Limits

Salim accused both TMC and BJP of attempting communal polarisation, but claimed the strategy had failed. “They tried to set the agenda on communal lines. They have failed miserably. Ministers and leaders have been forced to talk about livelihood issues instead of religion. That shift alone is a victory for Left politics,” he added.

‘Historic Alliance’

Salim described the CPI(M)’s alliance with CPI(ML) Liberation and the Indian Secular Front, as a “landmark development”. “This is the first such alliance of significance since the Naxalbari movement. It reflects both the breadth of our coalition and the seriousness of the moment,” he said, invoking the Left Front’s record of historic firsts — from Operation Barga to free schooling up to Class XII.

‘RSS-TMC Nexus’

In one of his sharpest allegations, the CPI(M) leader traced what he called a “long-standing relationship” between the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and TMC.

“TMC was born with one purpose — to oust the communists from Bengal, not to fight the BJP. Mamata herself has said BJP is their natural ally,” he claimed, citing incidents in Hooghly and Malda as evidence of RSS-TMC “cooperation.”

The Collective Fight

Closing on a note of resolve, Salim reframed the struggle of disenfranchised voters as a collective cause. “The fight of those whose names have been erased from the voter list is not their fight alone. It is the fight of Bengal’s common people. And in these elections, the common people will give a befitting reply,” he said.