Last Month, a marquee collapsed at PM Modi’s rally in West Bengal, injuring more than 20 people. The marquee collapsed in the middle of PM Modi’s speech, after which he demonstrated a calm demeanor and asked people to exit the rally calmly and patiently. He told the people “who have climbed up, please get down, all of you….please climb down. Those standing up there, please get down. Don’t run.” PM Modi made full efforts to help the injured people and asked the special protection group (SPG), his personal security detail, to help out. The injured people were taken to a hospital on motorcycles, as well as by the Prime Minister’s ambulance that follows his convoy. PM Modi later visited the hospital to meet and speak to the injured people.
However, West-Bengal Chief Minister displayed a careless attitude towards the people of her own state and latched on to the unfortunate incident, looking to score political brownie points. On 21 July while addressing a rally on the occasion of Martyr’s Day, she made an extremely insensitive remark regarding the incident. She said, “They cannot build a pandal. How can they build the country?”
Now, a probe conducted by Home Ministry has blamed the local civic authorities for the tent collapse. This is direct indictment of the haphazard attitude the civic authorities under TMC rule.
According to the probe report, adequate cooperation was not extended to the advance security liaison team by the local authorities. The report also suggested that enough police personnel were not deployed within the five km radius of the Prime Minister’s function. According to the Hindustan Times report, the Special Protection Group (SPG) secures the inner arch of the Prime Minister and the responsibility of giving security in the outer layers rests with the state government. Local authorities failed in the second task, an official said. Investigators also stated that, proper logistical help was not provided to the advance security liaison team which visited the state two weeks before the Prime Minister’s rally.
Overall conclusion of the report is that it was state authority who adopted lax attitude towards PM Modi’s security and still the chief minister of the state was shameless enough to attack its opponent party and its leader to score some political points. A mature leader especially who aspires to become the PM must avoid making such insensitive remarks. Such insensitive statements and the lax attitude that the authorities displayed are the result of BJP’s rising popularity in West Bengal. There is a sense of uneasiness among TMC leadership due to the increasing support BJP is getting in the state which Mamata considers her fiefdom. In Bengal, people are coming in large number to attend the rallies of BJP leaders like Amit Shah and PM Modi.
Mamata Banerjee should learn something from the incumbent Prime Minister who demonstrated excellent presence of mind in an extremely dangerous situation in the rally. Difficult times like these reveal what a person really is made of. PM Modi showed the signs of a true leader when he did not worry about his own security and instead guided his security personnel to help the injured. Mamata’s reaction to the same showed how spiteful and petty a leader she really is and what to expect from her if she indeed someday ascents to the PM’s chair.
