Pranab sure to win,but not without hitches

The small room on the first floor of a large house in Jangipur has a table stacked with files.

The small room on the first floor of a large house in Jangipur has a table stacked with files. In between meeting people and campaigning,Union External Minister Pranab Mukherjee clears these files,makes calls to officials in New Delhi,and also issues statements on crises in Sri Lanka and Nepal. I have carried my office here, says Mukherjee,who is also in charge of the Finance Ministry. I cannot help it,as I not only head two important ministries but also various groups of ministers, he says,before leaving for campaigning.

Though it is certain that he will win this election because of the development work that he has done here,at the ground level Mukherjee faces an uphill task with delimitation diluting a favourable electorate. The two Assembly segments of Farakka and Samshergunj are now part of Malda South constituency. Farakka has voted for Congress MLA for the past 18 years; its panchayat samiti is ruled by the Congress,eight out of nine gram panchayats are ruled by the Congress.

In Samshergunj,the panchayat samiti is run by the Congress and seven out of 10 gram panchayats are ruled by the Congress.

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Out of the seven Assembly constituencies Aurangabad,Suti,Jangipur,Nabagram,Sagardighi,Khargram and Lalgola except for Lalgola that is represented by Congresss Abu Hena,all the other six Assembly seats are represented by the Left.

However,Mukherjee is unfazed. I will not go by what delimitation has done. People have seen my work. And that is why I will get votes, he says.

His personal secretary Pradyut Guha puts out a list of works that Mukherjee has done so far. Pranabda got the Jiagunj-Azimgunj railway bridge repaired,he got the overbridge connecting Raghunathgunj with Jangipur constructed. He has got Rs 27,000 crore sanctioned for the Barasat-Dhalkhola Highway. He has also got a PF office set up at Jangipur for its 15 lakh beedi workers. He was instrumental in setting up a regional passport office and a regional Army recruitment centre at Berhampore. These are some of the things he has done for his constituency. And he has been representing the seat for only five years,what has the CPI(M) done in the last two terms when they won from here, Guha asks.

However,according to some local residents,Mukherjee will face a tough fight. First,he could not do much towards tackling the problem of erosion of Ganga and Padma,which is a major problem here. He is a busy minister and does not come to the constituency often. But CPI(M) candidate Mriganka Bhattacharya,who is also the chairman of Jangipur Municipality,is always here,standing by the people. In border areas,BJP candidate Bidyut Kumar Haldar will get some votes because the RSS and VHP have bases there. If Pranab Mukherjee wins,it will be because of his stature, Salauddin Shaikh,a tea stall owner at Raghunathgunj,told The Indian Express.

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The CPI(M) claims it will give a tough fight to Mukherjee: Except for a passport office or an Army recruitment centre,what else has he done? How do rural people benefit from these steps? Since he is on a sticky wicket,he is bringing stars like Mithun Chakrabarty to campaign for him, said Dibya Shankar Sukul,CPI(M) Raghunathgunj Zonal Committee secretary.

There are 10.85 lakh voters in this constituency and polling will be held across 1,100 booths.

100 Constituencies,WHERE KEY ISSUES PLAY

Key candidates

Pranab mukherjee,Congress

MRIGANKA BHATTACHARYA,CPI(M)

BACK STORY

2004 Pranab Mukherjee,Congress

1999 Abul Hasnat Khan CPI(M)

1998 Abul Hasnat Khan,CPI(M)