Mamata Banerjee got ‘fractured’ on March 10 while campaigning in the all-important seat of Nandigram. More than a month later, the West Bengal chief minister is still on a wheelchair, and her leg is still bandaged. That the bandage appears to be a plaster is a separate matter altogether. In fact, Mamata Banerjee’s present condition is clouded with uncertainty. Her diagnosis is a secret, and there is no clarity whether she ever suffered a fracture, although reports dating back last month have categorically stated that Mamata suffered mere ‘injuries’ on her left foot.
For argument’s sake, even if we are to believe that Banerjee suffered a fracture, she should have been able to get rid of her bandage by now, and most definitely of that restrictive wheelchair which is all set to ensure her electoral ruin on May 2. Yet, Mamata Banerjee is clinging on to the wheelchair as a baby gets attached to a new toy. This, despite the fact that Mamata Banerjee has been caught on camera umpteen number of times over the past month, standing up, and even playing around with her injured leg. Theories of her suffering a fracture have been put to rest with such visuals themselves.
Banerjee was last seen making grand use of the wheelchair on Tuesday when she staged a protest against the Election Commission for banning her from campaigning.
In fact, earlier last month, Mamata Banerjee had stunned the world, when her doctors were able to get rid of a plaster cast within 24 hours – thus giving rise to the speculations that Bengal’s doctors had a secret treatment regime for healing fractures in a day. Albeit, as it turns out, Banerjee allegedly never really suffered a fracture, and it was all part of an extravagant PR campaign. Earlier this month, in a viral video, Mamata Banerjee could be seen shaking her ‘injured’ leg comfortably without any discomfort, while also placing her right leg over the injured one – in a move which puts on display the superhuman capabilities of the Bengal chief minister.
Who plays around with the broken leg ?#EbarBJP pic.twitter.com/aRvhovT1cB
— Suresh Nakhua (Modi Ka Parivar) 🇮🇳 (@SureshNakhua) April 2, 2021
In another unverified video, Mamata Banerjee is allegedly seen standing on her feet while a group of Muslims recite prayers for her victory. This came as yet another video in which Banerjee was seen standing independently and without the wheelchair. In a campaign rally after being injured, Banerjee stood up for the national anthem.
The most fundamental question, remains, however, that of Banerjee not getting off the wheelchair even after a month of getting injured at Nandigram. Neither has she got rid of the bandage. It seems Mamata Banerjee is not realising how her wheelchair strategy is magnanimously backfiring. According to a senior BJP leader quoted by News18, “Her wheelchair campaign has, in fact, stolen her thunder and restricted her. Every politician has a particular style and Banerjee’s style was to pace up and down the stage, or walk into any village or shop…or speak freely to people. The wheelchair campaign has ended up restricting her.”
For how long the ‘fracture’ keeps ‘annoying’ Mamata Banerjee is yet to be seen. Our calculated guess is that the chief minister will be out of the wheelchair after the very last votes in Bengal are cast.