Amidst the verdant expanse of West Bengal’s Malda district lies a hamlet, where the denizens, in defiance, declared a stance against participation in the third phase of Lok Sabha elections today, citing the lamentable state of thoroughfares.
The inhabitants of Mangalpur gram panchayat, nestled within the confines of Habibpur block, orchestrated a demonstration outside the precincts of booth number 122 at Radhakantapur Primary School. Their grievance stemmed from the persistence of rudimentary ‘kaccha roads’ within their habitat, which metamorphose into quagmires during the deluge. This settlement, comprising 1350 constituents, found its voice in the form of placards wielded in protest.
Their plaintive cry echoed the narrative of neglect, wherein their appeals for amelioration had fallen on deaf ears, leaving them bereft of recourse but to abstain from electoral participation, as voiced by one among their ranks.
The escalating tension necessitated the intervention of a sizable contingent of law enforcement personnel, dispatched to quell the burgeoning unrest amidst the resolute populace.
Merely a lunar cycle prior, the hamlet of Chandrakona in West Midnapore bore witness to a similar display of dissent, symbolized by the ubiquitous banners bearing the inscription ‘no road, no bridge, no vote.’ The residents of Ghoshkira enclave, situated within Bhagwantpur 1 village panchayat of Chandrakona-2 block, vociferously articulated their demand for infrastructural enhancements, notably, the construction of traversable roads and bridges.
Likewise, in the hinterlands of Kalimpong district, the inhabitants of Gedong, a diminutive settlement perched 35 kilometers distant from Kalimpong town, united in a clarion call for improved amenities. The electorate comprising approximately 450 constituents, casting their shadow over the Darjeeling Lok Sabha constituency, threatened electoral abstinence owing to the deplorable state of roadways.