Buddhadev Bhattacharjee: From an aggressive politician to a suave Communist

Kolkata, May 18: Buddhadev Bhattacharjee, who took over reins of power in West Bengal from the longest serving chief minister Jyoti Basu, surprised pollsters by leading the Left Front to a record sixth term victory by a resounding margin beating off the challenge of Trinamool Congress-led combine.

Bhattacharjee, who had barely six months to emerge from the shadow of Basu before the Assembly elections, is considered by many to have weathered the anti-incumbency wave with his gentle and persuasive image in contrast to "aggressiveness" of his predecessor.

The 57-year-old leader, who served under Basu as his deputy for some months, was also successful as Chief Minister in resurrecting CPI (M)'s mass-contact which had weakened during the later part of its long regime.

Beginning his political career in his 20s, he joined the CPI (M) in 1966, two years after its formation. Bhattacharjee became the first national general secretary of the Democratic Youth Federation of India (SFI), youth wing of the party.

He participated in several mass movements and was also in the forefront in the solidarity movement on Vietnam. Jailed in 1966, 1967 and 1972, he was inducted into CPI (M) State committee in 1971.

He has been minister in the Left Front government since1977 when it first came to power, barring a few months in 1993 following disagreement with Basu over the issue of corruption.

Nephew of eminent Bengali poet late Sukanta Bhattacharya, Bhattacharjee penned a play 'dussamay' (bad times) which had the Babri Masjid demolition as its theme. He also translated Russian poet Mayakavosky's anthology of poems.

Bhattacharjee, inducted in the CPI (M) Central Committee in1985, was widely dubbed as 'arrogant' by the local media when he, in 1993, demolished the press corner in the state secretariat, Writers Buildings, citing 'security reasons'.

The demolition followed wide coverage by the press of police 'high-handedness' in dealing with Mamata Banerjee, then a Union minister, who was dragged out of the Writers Buildings and kept in the police lock-up before being released at midnight.

Banerjee was holding a dharna near Jyoti Basu's chamber inside the secretariat with a deaf and dumb woman allegedly raped by CPI (M) men before she was removed.

However, Bhattacharjee later revived his image and was entrusted with the Home (police) Department in addition to his information and culture portfolio, with which he started his ministerial career since his first electoral victory at the age of 33 in 1977.

Save the 1982 Assembly elections, it was a win throughout for the low-profile leftist who had a brief stint as a school teacher at Dum Dum in the city's northern outskirts.

He lost the 1982 polls when he cast his lot for the second time from Cossipore in the northern fringe of the metropolis. Later he changed over to Jadavpore constituency in south Kolkata never to look back.

Jadavpore appears to be his lucky hunting ground as he has never been defeated there since 1987 and this time it returned him to be the chief minister of the state for the next five years.

He trounced renowned actress but political greenhorn Madhavi Mukherjee, fielded by Trinamool Congress, who rose to international fame through her lead role in Satyajit Ray's film 'charulata'.

Bhattacharjee, who was born in Calcutta on March one1944, was schooled in Sailendra Sarkar Vidyalaya and graduated with Bengali honours from Presidency College in 1964. Incidentally, his only daughter, Suchetana, is currently a political science student of the same college. Wife Meera is a senior executive in a private firm.

Among the countries Bhattacharjee visited were China and Cuba. (PTI)