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Councillor invites voters' wrath by switching loyalties

Rifat Jawaid in Calcutta

She may have escaped the anti-defection law, but the electorate, which ensured her victory in Calcutta's civic polls, held in June, on a Congress ticket, are in no mood to endorse her change of loyalties.

Mumtaz Begum was among those few fortunate Congress leaders who sailed through against all odds from ward 140 in Metiaburz, an area dominated by Urdu speaking Muslims. However, earlier this month she jumped on to the Trinamul bandwagon.

Today, Mumtaz is facing stiff resistance from her constituents. So much so that she is unable to enter her own constituency and has been forced to lock herself inside the Trinamul Congress' Nizam Palace office.

Enraged residents of Metiaburz are determined to block her entry into the area unless Mumtaz formally steps down from the councillor's post.

Shabnam Begum, a Youth Congress leader of Metiaburz, accused Mumtaz of 'cheating the residents of ward 140 who overwhelmingly voted her to power.' Talking to rediff.com, Shabnam said, "We may not have grumbled had she been successful in securing a good deal in return for her support to the Trinamul. A position in the Mayor-In-Council could have helped this otherwise neglected and underdeveloped area. But, the manner in which she changed loyalties gives us sufficient reason to sense foul play. What perturbed us most was the fact that Mumtaz kept denying rumours about her inclination towards the Trinamul till the last moment."

Two other Muslim councillors - Shamsuzzaman Ansari and Moinul Haq Chowdhury - have joined the Trinamul after winning on Congress tickets. However, it has been smooth sailing for them for obvious reasons. While Ansari has successfully bargained for a seat on the MIC (marketing), Haq was made MIC member in charge of education. Thus, both have reduced the possibility of a backlash from their voters.

Trinamul leaders have barred the entry of media persons wishing to meet Mumtaz. Repeated requests by this correspondent for an audience with the 'secluded' councillor were turned down.

Subrata Mukherjee, Mayor of the Calcutta Municipal Corporation, denied reports of Mumtaz avoiding a confrontation with her electorate.

He told rediff.com, "She has taken refuge in the Nizam Palace office for purely personal reasons. She is facing some family-related problems and will go back as soon as they subside."

Ansari, when contacted, said that Mumtaz had addressed a massive rally in Metiaburz along with other newly elected councillors from the area only two days ago.

"Had the allegations been true, she wouldn't have dared attend an open rally without any security," Ansari remarked.

Javed Ahmad Khan, MIC (health), said economic problem forced Mumtaz to live a secluded life. He, however, felt that she would be back in her constituency within a few days.

Of late, many Congress councillors, including former party leader in the CMC Iqbal Ahmed, have joined the Trinamul Congress. Interestingly, even Ahmed, who is a relatively new entrant in the Trinamul, is reported to have been assured the chairmanship of Borough VI of the CMC.

The Trinamul now enjoys an absolute majority in the civic body with 71 councillors in its kitty. The Trinamul-Bharatiya Janata Party combine's original tally was 64.

EARLIER REPORT
Calcutta returns a hung municipal corporation

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