For the past three years, the Left Front-led West Bengal government and the opposition, have fought on all grounds, most vociferously on industrialisation in West Bengal leading to the Singur and Nandigram debacle. But there is one ground, which has united the parties, poll graffiti as the most effective tool for election campaign.
The Election Commission recently agreed to poll graffiti, with a rider : prior written permission of a private property owner is required and the permission letter copy has to be deposited with the local police station within three days of permission. Poll graffiti on public buildings is not allowed.
Debashis Sen, Chief Electoral Officer, West Bengal, said that at a recent meeting with political parties, there was a general consensus that poll graffiti was the cheapest mode. “Parties also raised the issue that it would be difficult to submit written consent with the local police station within three days, but we are clear that consent of private property owner would have to be obtained,” said Sen.
In the last Assembly elections in 2006, poll graffiti was banned since there was a directive from the Election Commission on the West Bengal Prevention of Defacement of Property Act, 1976 (passed by Siddhartha Sankar Ray, as the chief minister, during Emergency), and subsequently the state government issued a notification invoking it. However, the Act was repealed in 2007.
The issue appears to have united all political parties as they speak in one voice, something that could have saved from the slowing down of the industrialisation process in the state. A sample from voices across political parties:
Mohammed Salim, MP and a member of the CPI(M) questioned that why should such a norm be enforced only for elections and political parties, when there were commercials a galore everywhere. “I think, a section of people have vested interest. Any other form of campaigning like billboards are much more expensive and more pollution as far as the landscape of the city is concerned,” he said.
Partha Chatterjee, the Opposition leader and Trinamool Congress MLA said, “We will write on the walls. Who will deny the ruling party from writing on the walls, they have the police on their side. But they can refuse us. If the walls can be used for business purpose all the time, why restrict political parties.”
Subrata Mukherjee, a member of Congress said, “This whole thing is meaningless. If the party uses removable material then there should not be any problem.”
Even as opinion on consent is being debated, all parties agree that removable material should be used for wall graffiti.
