Bengal Police's Servility to TMC Backfires Spectacularly

Anubrata Mondal, the Trinamool Congress' strongman in Birbhum district in West Bengal, is one of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's long-time favourites.

- SUPROTIM MUKHERJEE

Anubrata Mondal, the Trinamool Congress' strongman in Birbhum district in West Bengal, is one of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee's long-time favourites. Keshto, as she calls him fondly, has been the chief of the Birbhum wing of the Trinamool Congress (TMC) for the past two decades. He ensures victory in every election. And he raises funds. He has just spent two years in Tihar jail for links with cattle smuggling.

Mondal's foul comments are legendary and aimed at party colleagues and opponents—without fear or favour. He once publicly ordered TMC workers to bomb the police and to set fire to the homes of political foes. No action was ever taken against him. But in the leaked audio clip of a phone conversation that went viral last week, his language crossed all limits.

Mondal is heard warning a police inspector, Liton Halder, with physical harm and threatening his wife and mother with rape. He was enraged since Halder had reported to his seniors that Mondal's political rally had "only 12,000 people". Every other word in the audio clip is a four-letter expletive and has had to be bleeped out.

A few lower-rung Trinamool representatives mumbled their condemnation of Mondal in television debates. Mamata went silent.

Instead, the legal cell of Birbhum police sent a letter to the lead anchor of a top Bengali TV news channel, ABP Ananda. It threatened action "without any further notice" if the channel continued to air the controversial audio clip as it "tarnished the image of the police". As if Mondal had not damaged the image of the police already with the abuse he had hurled at the inspector in charge of Bolpur police station, and then ignored police summons for days. Seemingly with impunity.

Police have reportedly confiscated two cell phones of Inspector Halder, the recipient of the abusive call.

Meanwhile, they have let the alleged abusive caller, Mondal, keep his own.