The area around Radu Babu’s tea shop in Kolkata’s Lake Market is usually chockablock each morning with crowds of people sitting around sipping chai and biting into buttered toast or biscuits discussing politics. A favorite haunt of not just the early risers of the city young and old, but of journalists, musicians, artists, actors, authors and thinkers.
Election time witnesses an additional surge of energy with candidates in the fray, who are often regulars at these daily addas anyway, dropping in in spite of their hectic campaigning schedules. Swapan Dasgupta, the BJP candidate from the Rashbehari Assembly constituency was there on Sunday with his wife Reshmi Dasgupta. The two journalists had met while working for The Statesman in the 1990s. “He was initially with the Calcutta office and I was in Delhi,” says Roy Dasgupta. “We met when he came to work in the Delhi office.”
Dasgupta, the 70-year-old Oxford alumnus and columnist is spotted chatting with a friend. In an impromptu interview he tells me that change is not an “if” but a “when.” Here are excerpts from the conversation that ensued:
“In case the BJP comes to power in West Bengal what is its vision for the state?”
SDG: It is not a question of “in case” but rather a question of “when the BJP comes to power”. We are very optimistic that on May 4, we will be securing a majority.
What are the changes that we can expect if you do get a majority.
When we get a majority, our main priority for West Bengal would be to create an environment of enterprise which would be good for business, for education and where the law and order situation would enable people to invest in West Bengal. We would focus on improving the law and order situation. I think West Bengal is suffering from a huge credibility crisis which began with the Left but actually took a heightened turn after the Singur (episode). A lot of people say, “Well, if Tata cannot manage it how the hell do you expect us to invest there?” It’s very simple logic. So the restoration of confidence is probably the most important first step we have to take. After that, the amount of housekeeping which we have to do is just stupendous. And I think that things like Education is in a complete mess. It has completely collapsed. Health is also in shambles. Apart from that the general level of corruption that has taken place. In fact it isn’t even corruption but extortion. To clean all this up is what we really have to attempt to do. So the list of what we have to do is very long.
Investment for industry is obviously important but there are concerns that this would come at the cost of environment.
Is this an accusation or is this a propaganda that you are talking about? I don’t think that in any part of India where the BJP is in power (the BJP is in power in about 20 states) there has been any complaint of any reckless destruction or spoiling of the environment. So I don’t think that there is that to worry about. In West Bengal there is a land issue. And at the same time there are large number of factories which will never come into business because they have been out of commission for the past twenty or thirty years. But the land is valuable. But the land is blocked. So we have to probably consider some enabling legislation. Whereby that land which has been set aside for industrial purposes can be reused for industrial purposes.
The sick factories?
Yes there are so many. All over Howrah. All over the other side of the river. Even within Kolkata there are places like that but not so many as in Howrah. These can be used for industry but not for housing.
Would the so-called “double engine” government where the same party that rules the Centre also rules the state is going to be able to finally bring a solution to the problem of the sick factories which are stuck in litigation?
They have created a situation whereby anything which has the hand of the Central Government is treated as an object of suspicion by the present regime. We don’t want to do that. This has to change. There will be things which will be applicable for West Bengal and good for West Bengal and there will be things which are not so relevant for West Bengal. I think the whole thing has to be discerned case by case. Overall our attitude should be that we have to work together with and use the Centre for the benefit of the people of West Bengal. And not use the Centre as a punching bag. Ayushman Bharat is a classic example of what can be done. Today, West Bengal, which has so many migrant laborers, probably the largest now including Bihar, often cannot get their hospital expenses met. Because the card issued by the state government has no relevance outside West Bengal. Ayusman Bharat is relevant an all over India. So this will be a great benefit to the people of West Bengal if they can avail it. This is just one example. There are other initiatives like the Smart Cities program which can rational
How would you match the current state government’s populist schemes like the public distribution programs such as Lakshmi’r Bhandar, Kanyashree and others?
We are promising a package of welfare measures which in quantitative terms is better than the one provided by the Trinamool government but there is a difference. We don’t see the welfare schemes as an end in themselves. But s merely as an enabling system. Our priority is to create an environment whereby jobs, enterprise, industry can actually return to them. So we look at the welfare schemes in that context.
Finally, who is BJP considering as the possible Chief Minister?
That as something we will decided after we win. That is a question the answer to which is above my paygrade.