Border inequations

Off the highway,a ground fills up with Bodo people who break into chants as they wait for local MLA Majendra Narzary to turn up for the meeting. “No one can defeat Narzary or his BPF in this constituency. All Bodos support him,” says Abhinav Doimari.

Young supporters cordon off nearly a kilometre on one flank of the highway,briskly diverting cars,shooing non-party bystanders and shouting at police when party supporters get off vans and troop into the ground.

Roughly 40km away,Tufangunge in Cooch Behar is Ganesh Dakua’s ground. The Kamtapur People’s Party (KPP) candidate admits he envies the Bodo movement’s success in Gossaigaon. The movement,says Dakua,had started with a objective similar to the Kamtapur one: statehood. Also,it was restricted to one corner of the state. “But they are quite popular in that one constituency,” adds the forty-something farmer.

The BPF has an elected candidate each in the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha,while the Greater Cooch Behar Democratic Party-KPP alliance has never managed to claim more than five per cent of their constituency’s votes. “Unlike them,we will never tie up with a national party,” says Dakua. The BPF is part of the Congress-led coalition government in Assam.

Dakua stops at the hut of Sachindranath Barma,70,one of the few of his clan,the Rajbongshis,who still live for the dream of a separate state. Old-timers among the Koch-Rajbongshis resist partnerships in national politics,fearing extinction of their culture and their language. “Koch-Rajbongshis of the new generation have different priorities,” says Dakua. “Very few of them are with us,though they constitute nearly 50 per cent of the constituency. The Bodos are all together,aren’t they?”

Now,the Trinamool Congress has now pitched Bodo against Bodo. Padmavil in Assam looks like a Bengal village but when you notice the broad sweep of colorful fabric around women’s waists,you realise they are clad in mekhelas and not sarees. Samara Basumatary,40,of Padmavil,clad in an orange mekhela and white chaddar,is the Trinamool candidate from Gossaigaon. Basumatary had abandoned the Bodo People’s Progressive Front,which is at loggerheads with the Bodo People’s Front,because it wasn’t a “national party”.

She joined the Trinamool four months ago,tired of being chased by BPF cadres and wary of living on leftovers. “Even before the Trinamool Congress announced its decision of fighting the elections,I had been trying to find someone who could introduce me to Didi. The kind of work she has done in Bengal is spectacular,we want her in Assam too,” she declares. She is still overawed by the support of a national leader. “Will Mamata di come visit us anytime soon? It will do us a world of good,” says Basumatary

People of Padmavil and several other villages in Gossaigaon shuttle in and out of Bengal,buying seeds,selling wares. Now the winds of change have blown across. “We know the Trinamool is an ally of the Congress at the Centre. But Didi listens to no one but herself. We have joined her and hope to drive the Congress government out of the state,” adds Basumatary.

The Trinamool army in Gossaigaon is a mix of Santhalis,Adivasis,Bodos and Koch-Rajbonghsis of the same descent as in Bengal. Basumatary herself is a Bodo. “Didi has assured us that if we help her win,she will help us secure Scheduled Tribe status in Assam,” says Roy.

The Rajbonghsis in Bengal are divided into Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. In Assam,“Bodos constitute nearly 45 per cent of our constituency; they are equally disillusioned with the Bodo party in power. They will all vote for us,” Basumatary says.

In Tufangunge,Argya Roy Pradhan,businessman and Trinamool candidate at Tufangunge,is a more seasoned politician. He had lost the Lok Sabha polls by 2,000 votes. “This time around,almost all in this constituency are convinced we need change,” he smiles.

Rana Barma,tea stall owner,says,“The Trinamool will win. Even a few years ago,CPM cadres had to be consulted to settle kitchen disputes. Now they are hiding.”

Over three days,several CPM kiosks across Tufangunge have remained closed – the only sign of their presence being red flags tied to bamboo poles huddled together.

Pradhan has his day neatly sorted out. Village visits are followed up by afternoon rallies in the town and neigbourhood visits late in the evening. The TMC runs like clockwork,while the Left seems uncannily frozen in time.

The latter might draw comfort from the rare Congress kiosk in Gossaigaon. Dominic Lakra,a BA student,sits in the makeshift kiosk along the highway. “We are garnering support for Congress. Please sign here. The Bodo party has done nothing for us,” he says.