West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who is known for her more commoner attitude has once again proved her mass appeal during her recent tour to Darjeeling, the hilly terrain of Bengal. Two incidents that once again marked her as someone very own, first a student from Assam seeking admission, got admitted in the Darjeeling Government College on the behest of the Chief Minister and secondly when she took the centre stage when a vehicle of President Pranab Mukherjee’s convoy skidded off a hilly road while returning from Darjeeling, injuring 6 on board.

Mamata has been on official visit to Darjeeling from 11^th July to 15^th July along with an official programme with the President of India Pranab Mukherjee who arrived a day later along with West Bengal Governor Keshari Nath Tripathi. The programme was on July 13^th, which was organized to celebrate the birth anniversary of the famous Nepalese poet Bhanubhakta Acharya’s birth anniversary.Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee also felicitated PresidentPranab Mukherjee on behalf of the state government.

During her 4 days stay in Darjeeling she got an Assam girl admitted to Darjeeling Government College even though all general category seats were filled up and the admission date was over, following the girl’s chance meeting with Mamata Banerjee during the chief minister’s recent visit.

The incident so happened when 19-year-old girl from Milanpur in Nagaon district of Assam had come to Darjeeling, along with her father Swapan Kumar and mother Nilakshi, on July 11 to enquire about admission to Darjeeling College. On 14^th July the family were going to the college through Jawahar (Birch Hill) Road. Mamata Banerjee was walking down from Richmond Hill towards Chowrasta, while the Assam family was moving in the opposite direction

Mridushparna, unaware of Mamata’s identity, approached her. She asked aunty (Mamata) if she could direct them to the college. Mamata seems to have said maybe, it is further down and then, she then asked Mridushparna not to get wet in the rain (there was a drizzle at that time). Mamata asked her about the purpose and she replied that she had come for college admission.

Mridushparna’s father Swapan had by then reached the college and enquired with the authorities about the admission process, where he got to know that the online admission process was already completed and nothing could be done.

Online applications were to be submitted from May 30 till June 6. The entire admission process for honours courses was completed by June 21 and classes started on July 8. The girl had obtained 85.6 per cent marks from Ramanujan Junior College in Plus Two exams.

Mridushparna had by then come to know that it was the chief minister of Bengal who had spoken to her. Speaking to this Journalist Mridushparna said “We returned from the college and all of us were taking shelter at a shed along the road. It was then that Mamata was returning to Richmond Hill. She saw and asked meif I had got admission.I said the admission date was over”

Mridushparna also told the chief minister that she would go back to Assam. The girl had already got admission at Nagaon College. Moments after Mamata left, two security officials were sent to call the Assamese family. The chief minister wanted them to get in touch with the district magistrate for admission. The DM took them to his residence and asked for mark sheets, which they produced later.

The father a day later wrote a letter with a prayer for admission to the DM. The letter was forwarded to the college yesterday and was asked to pay the admission fee of Rs 1,745.

Mridushparna father Swapan said: “We had applied to a college in Bhawanipore and Mount Carmel College in Bangalore. In both the colleges, she had got admission but the fees were around Rs 30,000-35,000, which I could not afford. We had found out that admission fees were less in Darjeeling.”Swapan works as a private mathematics tutor and earns around Rs 16,000-17,000 a month.

The Darjeeling Government College not only granted the girl admission but also exceeded the seat limit for the history honours course. The course had been originally allotted 34.

A senior official in the higher education department said Mridushparna was given admission under the supernumerary quota.

“Students from economically weaker sections of the society are given admissions to colleges for less tuition fees under this quota. As the said candidate could not afford the cost of studying in a Calcutta college as evident from the versions of her parents, she was admitted following the chief minister’s request, applying the clause of the supernumerary quota,” said the official.

This is how Mamata connects with the common people, who identified herself as the woman next door to anyone. Next what she did is also something very astonishing.

While returning from Darjeeling an escort car for President Pranab Mukherjee fell into a gorge in Darjeeling. All six security personnel traveling in the car were rescued in an operation that was overseen by West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee personally.

The accident took place while Mukherjee was on way to the Bagdogra airport in Siliguri to return to Delhi at the conclusion of his three-day visit to Darjeeling. The West Bengal Chief Minister was coming with Pranab Mukherjee in an another car. Following the accident, the President halted at the tourist lodge at Kurseong for over 30 minutes and left only after the accident victims were rescued.

As soon as the accident occurred, as the vehicle was just ahead of Mamata’s car, she was the first witness to the accident. The Chief Minister who raised an alarm about the car falling into a gorge. She immediately plunged into action; she was seen pacing on the road holding a microphone. She kept talking to the security personnel while they were awaiting help. When some security officers asked her to proceed to Bagdogra, she refused to leave.

She was heard addressing people in Bengali with the public address system. “Do not worry; one of you has already been rescued. Others will also be rescued soon” she was heard saying apparently to people who were inside the Scorpio that fell into a tea plantation located around hundred feet below the road. “Do not panic, the road is slippery,” the CM was heard saying. Banerjee also mentioned rewarding people involved in the rescue effort.

After halting for a while, the long line of cars proceeded for Bagdogra again. But these two incidents once again proved her benevolence, making her more identical as someone very own very close.

Tags: Mamata BanerjeeMridushparnaPoliticsPranab Mukherjee