West Bengal polls: SIR anxiety, Islam’s arrest and rising discontent against Trinamool in Sujapur

Malda (Sujapur): Sujapur constituency in Malda district, the hotspot of protests against West Bengal’s SIR where the national highway was blocked throughout Wednesday, is reeling in shock and anger ahead of the assembly polls. Anti-Trinamool Congress sentiment is visible on the ground, with many residents expressing resentment over CM Mamata Banerjee crediting the CID for the arrest of Mofakkarul Islam. Feeling antagonised over the arrest of Islam, sections of the Muslim community are questioning the CM’s intent.

Islam, an AIMIM member and the alleged mastermind behind the Kaliachak incident, who the police has accused of delivering a speech that incited violence, was arrested by Bengal Police from Bagdogra airport. “We have lost our votes due to SIR. Banerjee has arrested Islam. He spoke for us and was helping us,” a carpenter in Sujapur, working near the highway where protests took place on Wednesday, told ET.

Women, too, expressed anger over both the CM’s remarks and the arrest. “Islam was passing along the highway, which was blocked for hours. The administration failed to convince people to withdraw their protest, but he managed to convince people. Yet he was arrested,” claimed a local resident.”We are very unhappy with the CM’s statement. We had submitted all documents – Madhyamik admit card, pass certificate and other necessary papers but names have been deleted during adjudication. We submitted an appeal to the tribunal also,” another woman said. “The District Magistrate has assured us that help will be provided once the tribunal starts functioning. But it will take time, and we may not be able to vote this time,” she added.

Grievances against Banerjee and her remarks on Islam’s arrest remain high in the Sujapur constituency. Banerjee had taken credit for the arrest of Islam during a public rally in Malda on April 3.

Sujapur constituency, a mix of urban and rural population, has around 88% Muslim and 12% Hindu population. The seat was won in 2021 by Trinamool’s Muhammad Abdul Ghani with 1,52,445 votes. From 1967 to 1977, the seat was won by ABA Ghani Khan Chaudhury. From 1952 to 2011, Sujapur was a Congress stronghold, represented largely by members of the Ghani Khan Chowdhury family – first by ABA Ghani Khan Chowdhury, followed by his sister Rubi Noor, then Mausam Noor (Rubi’s mother), and later Abu Naser Khan Chowdhury (Gani Khan’s brother). It was only in 2021 that the Congress lost the seat, with Trinamool Congress’s Muhammad Abdul Ghani becoming the first MLA from outside the family.

In this election, Trinamool has fielded Sabina Yasmin from the seat, while AIMIM’s Rejaul Karim, Congress’s Mohd Abdul Hannan and AISF’s Md Karimullah Haque are also in the fray. The constituency, with roots dating back to the Mughal era, has a rich cultural history.