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ABSTRACT
In this viewpoint article, we analyse the consolidation of Abhishek Banerjee as the future leader of the Trinamool Congress (TMC), the dominant political party in West Bengal and one of the most influential opposition parties at the pan-Indian level. While the TMC has gone from strength to strength for over a decade under the leadership of Mamata Banerjee (who is also Abhishek’s aunt), it has recently found itself in an unprecedented crisis, mired in allegations of corruption and misgovernance. Yet, every crisis presents new opportunities, and in this contribution, we show how the TMC has worked to simultaneously rejuvenate the party’s orientation while taking forward a long-unfolding project of political dynasticism whereby ‘the nephew’ Abhishek is being positioned to take over the party leadership. Our analysis proceeds from an overview of the crises that have engulfed the TMC, to a discussion of how it has been used as a window of opportunity for raising Abhishek’s standing. Towards this end, we focus on a series of recent party initiatives – particularly a mass outreach programme called Nabo Jowar (new wave) – as well as the recent 2023 panchayat elections where Abhishek played a key role in securing a landslide victory for the TMC.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).
Notes
1 https://frontline.thehindu.com/the-nation/the-rot-within-ssc-recruitment-scam-in-west-bengal-strikes-at-the-core-of-bengali-society/article66066794.ece, accessed 17 May 2023.
2 https://indianexpress.com/article/express-exclusive/pm-awaas-is-for-rural-poor-but-in-west-bengal-owners-of-houses-like-these-are-on-the-list-8398199/, accessed 18 May 2023.
3 https://www.hindustantimes.com/cities/kolkata-news/from-cattle-to-coal-smuggling-why-birbhum-is-under-the-scanner-101660129775368.html, accessed 15 May 2023.
4 https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/amid-corruption-charges-against-tmc-mamata-challenges-bjp-to-arrest-her-101661769901315.html, accessed 17 May 2023.
5 https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/india/cbi-registers-fir-in-west-bengal-municipal-recruitment-scam-case-on-calcutta-hc-order/articleshow/99761586.cms, accessed 16 May 2023.
6 https://www.hindustantimes.com/cities/kolkata-news/calcutta-high-court-orders-tmc-s-abhishek-banerjee-to-cooperate-with-investigators-in-teacher-recruitment-scam-probe-101683563696350.html, accessed 15 May 2023.
7 https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/bengal-mantri-partha-chatterjee-arrested-after-20-hour-ed-quizzing/articleshow/93080354.cms, accessed 17 May 2023.
8 Such as the duare Sarkar (government at your doorstep) and paray samadhan (solution in your locality) schemes, outreach programmes developed by the government to make public services more accessible. This is done by setting up regular camps in every municipal ward and panchayat area, and facilitated through an e-governance driven service delivery mechanism. See https://wb.nic.in/news/duare-sarkar-govt-at-doorstep-and-paray-samadhan-solution-at-mohalla-two-massive-outreach-program-of-government-of-west-bengal-developed-by-nic-west-bengal/#:~:text=Duare%20Sarkar%20(Government%20at%20Doorstep,%2C%20%E2%80%9CSwasthasathi%E2%80%9D%2C%20Social%20Pension, accessed 21 May 2023.
9 https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/as-mamata-banerjee-turns-focus-on-national-stage-nephew-rises-in-bengal-1866530, accessed 15 May 2021.
10 https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/as-mamata-banerjee-turns-focus-on-national-stage-nephew-rises-in-bengal-1866530, accessed 15 May 2021.
11 https://www.telegraphindia.com/states/west-bengal/mamata-banerjee-lets-out-nephew-secret/cid/1690014, accessed 24 September 2019.
12 https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/bengal-polls-mamata-banerjee-political-heir-abhishek-banerjees-rise-in-trinamool-2374337, accessed 10 April 2021.
13 Source: https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/abhishek-banerjee-attacked-as-tolabaj-mamata-banerjees-nephew-flips-slur-back-at-suvendu-adhikari-2344289, accessed 15 May 2021.
14 Source: https://theprint.in/politics/rise-of-the-bhaipo-what-mamatas-hattrick-could-mean-for-nephew-abhishek-banerjee/651085/, accessed 15 May 2021.
15 Ibid.
16 https://twitter.com/EkDaakeAbhishek/status/1556666696064454656, accessed 3 May 2023.
17 https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/new-trinamool-in-6-months-posters-with-mamata-banerjees-nephew-abhishek-banerjees-pic-3260523, accessed 19 May 2023.
18 https://indianexpress.com/article/political-pulse/abhishek-banerjee-fires-panchayat-pradhans-in-bid-to-boost-tmc-image-before-panchayat-polls-8332827/, accessed 22 May 2023.
19 https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/political-slugfest-takes-centre-stage-ahead-of-west-bengal-panchayat-polls-101672598676700.html, accessed 22 May 2023.
20 Ibid.
21 Didi, meaning elder sister, is an endearing term for Mamata Banerjee. She is, in the popular imagination, Bengal’s didi, the compassionate, caring and self-sacrificial elder sister who sets aside her own interests as she works for the betterment of her supporters (Nielsen Citation2016).
22 https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/panchayat-polls-trinamool-congress-launches-massive-outreach-programme/articleshow/96688304.cms, accessed 22 May 2023.
23 Trinamool Congress’ new outreach an image makeover for Abhishek Banerjee – The Hindu, accessed 25 June 2023.
24 https://tnjofficial.com/en, accessed 22 May 2023.
25 https://goachronicle.com/trinamoole-nabo-jowar-aims-to-bring-welfare-to-people-from-all-sections-abhishek/, accessed 23 May 2023.
26 Ibid.
27 Bengal Panchayat Polls: Will Abhishek Banerjee’s 60-day Yatra Bring About Promised ‘Change’ in TMC? – News18, accessed 29 June 2023.
28 Ibid.
29 ‘TMC doors shut forever’: Abhishek Banerjee on rebel candidates in panchayat polls | Kolkata – Hindustan Times, accessed 29 June 2023.
30 Fear of losing minority vote taught TMC a lesson on poll violence. But only partially (theprint.in), accessed 29 June 2023.
31 236,000 nominations filed for 74k seats for West Bengal panchayat polls (business-standard.com), accessed 29 June 2023.
32 Panchayat polls | TMC list delay sets off defections to BJP, Congress ahead of Bengal panchayat polls – Telegraph India, accessed 29 June 2023.
33 Panchayat elections | Withdraw nominations as Independents for July 8 panchayat elections: Trinamul Congress warns party dissidents – Telegraph India, accessed 29 June 2023.
34 https://indianexpress.com/article/political-pulse/bengal-panchayat-polls-results-political-pulse-trinamool-congress-victory-8832531/, accessed 15 July 2023. ZP, PS and GP are the three tiers of the panchayat system, ZP is the district level top body, PS is the sub-district/block level intermediate body, and GP is village-level lowest body. There are 20 ZPs, 341 PSs and 3317 GPs in total in the state.
35 https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/other-states/with-over-51-trinamool-registers-its-highest-vote-percentage-in-west-bengal-panchayat-polls/article67076564.ece, accessed 15 July 2023.
36 https://indianexpress.com/article/political-pulse/bengal-panchayat-polls-results-political-pulse-trinamool-congress-victory-8832531/, accessed 15 July 2023.
37 https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/center-owes-rs-5433-crore-to-west-bengal-under-mgnregs-abhishek-banerjee/articleshow/96404634.cms, accessed 15 July 2023.
38 https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/kolkata/abhishek-banerjee-starts-tmcs-new-campaign-says-bjps-communal-narrative-wont-dictate-bengals-politics/article66777593.ece, accessed 15 July 2023.
39 In fact, while we refrain from speculating about the upcoming national elections, Abhishek has already become a prominent figure in the opposition coalition. See https://www.telegraphindia.com/west-bengal/trinamul-finds-support-from-india-allies-on-abhishek-skipping-committee-meet-on-account-of-ed-summons/cid/1965943, accessed 17 Nov 2023.
Additional information
Notes on contributors
Ritanjan Das
Ritanjan Das is a university lecturer in contemporary South Asian politics at the Leiden Institute of Area Studies (LIAS), University of Leiden, Netherlands. He specialises in the political economy of development in South Asia, with a particular focus on the intersectional domain of development politics and inequality. He has written extensively on urban development, community-making, political illiberalism, migration, social welfare, land acquisition-dispossession, and communist politics. He is the author of two books: The Politics of Community-making in New Urban India: Illiberal Spaces, Illiberal Cities (Routledge 2023; co-authored), and Neoliberalism and the Transforming Left in India: A Contradictory Manifesto (Routledge 2018).
Kenneth Bo Nielsen
Kenneth Bo Nielsen is Associate Professor of Social Anthropology, University of Oslo, Leader of the Norwegian Network for Asian Studies, and Research Associate at the Department of Sociology, University of Pretoria. He works on topics of crucial importance to contemporary India, including land dispossession and agrarian change, environmental conflict, and the political economy of development. Recent books include Land Dispossession and Everyday Politics in Rural Eastern India (Anthem Press 2018), The Great Goa Land Grab (Goa1556 2022, co-authored), Authoritarian Populism and Bovine Political Economy in Modi’s India (Routledge 2024, co-authored), and Indian Democracy: Origins, Trajectories, Contestations (Pluto Press 2019, co-edited).