The entire nation — from the business community to common man — may be anxiously awaiting his budget speech on March 16, but Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, has already set the tone for celebration at Jangipur, his constituency.
No, there is no promise of any budgetary sop, as yet, but it's Mukherjee's decision to build a house for himself in his constituency that has sent land prices soaring. Land prices in Dewli have shot up at least ten times since Mukherjee bought the plot two years back, bringing much cheer to the locals.
Jangipur, in the Murshidabad district of West Bengal, has always been special to Mukherjee, as in his own words, people here gave him “the honour of winning a direct electoral battle for the first time”. Never before the 2004 parliamentary election, the Leader of the House in Loksabha had won a direct election in four decades of his political career, even though he had served the Congress-led governments at the Centre in various capacities.
Whether in charge of External Affairs, Defence or Finance, despite all high-profile assignments Mukherjee, who hails from Birbhum district of West Bengal, has always had to put in the extra bit to undo the tag of ‘outsider’ in his constituency. But Mukherjee's decision to build a house at Dewli has surely done it for him.
“When he filed nomination as a Lok Sabha candidate in 2004, he was an outsider to us. But not any more. He is our MP for two terms (elected twice from Jangipur in 2004, 2009) and now he is also getting his house built here,” says Sujauddin, who like many of his fellow villagers, is excited about the prospect of a high-profile neighbour.
Apart from a two-storeyed building with nine rooms and a shrine, the one acre plot will have a pond and plenty of greenery surrounding Mukherjee's home.
“Pranab da visited Jangipur so many times, but he could not stay back. Although, he rented home here, it is not large enough to accommodate his security personnel. So this house means a lot to us. This will bring prosperity,” a local Congress leader said.
Prosperity already seems to be pouring in finance minister's constituency. Banks flocked to the Finance Minister Mukherjee's parliamentary constituency in the last few years. Unlike many villages and towns in West Bengal crying for financial services, Jangipur in Murshidabad district, is surely an exception with over 20 branches of various banks.
And now locals say land price at Dewli village and adjoining areas is also shooting up rapidly, following Mukherjee's decision to build a house.
“Land prices have increased at least ten times in the last two years. Pranab da bought this one acre plot for Rs 15 lakh about two years back. Now you will have to pay more than Rs 1.5 crore for an acre of land here,” Mohammad Akhruzzaman, local congress MLA from Raghunathganj, who is looking after the construction work of Mukherjee's house, said.
What's more, local Congress leaders want Mukherjee to represent Jangipur for another term as people will be voting for their ‘neighbour’ next time.
“Whether Pranab da will contest or not in next Lok Sabha, that is his own decision. But he is definitely going to stay in Jangipur. People here love him and he wants to carry forward this relation,” Akhruzzaman said.
Congress men will have to wait as Mukherjee is unlikely to take a final call any time soon on contesting the next Lok Sabha election. Before that, people of Jangipur are now eagerly awaiting for the ‘Poila Baisakh’ (Bengali new year, April 14 this year), when Mukherjee's new house is scheduled to be inaugurated.
But their wait for the high-profile neighbour might get longer as Akhruzzaman said, it will take another six months to complete the work.
