As the BJP Government Bulldozes Bengal's Hawkers, Resistance Sprouts From a Likely Quarter |
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Kolkata: The bulldozer has been a consistent symbol of the month that has passed since the Bharatiya Janata Party was elected to form the government in West Bengal. The “double-engine” administration’s aggressive drive of bulldozer-led evictions across Kolkata and various parts of the state has destroyed livelihoods and driven the poorest to ruin. This fear has now also reached the book-selling hawkers of College Street, Kolkata’s renowned neighbourhood and the largest hub of booksellers in the country. And yet, there is also resistance.
A protest rally on June 1, organised by Left-affiliated trade unions, witnessed a large turnout of workers, hawkers, and supporters who demanded an immediate halt to evictions and rehabilitation for those deprived of their means of livelihood.
Raising slogans and carrying placards, the demonstrators urged the government to abandon what they termed a “bulldozer policy” and adopt a humane approach that safeguards both the rights and livelihoods of hawkers.
A protest rally in Kolkata by Left-affiliated trade unions against hawker evictions without rehabilitation on June 1. Photo: Madhu Sudan Chatterjee.
‘How long can they be stopped?’
Gargi Chatterjee, a leader of the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU), who has been at the forefront of protests against the eviction of hawkers across the state said that the BJP’s manner of bulldozing is similar to how it introduced livestock trade regulations that effectively halted the sale of cattle and buffaloes in markets across the state, severely affecting the livelihoods of millions of poor and marginalised people irrespective of religion or caste.
“Now bulldozers have been deployed at several railway stations, with the railway authorities and state police jointly carrying out eviction drives against hawkers. Sustained protests led by Left trade unions have so far succeeded in stalling such eviction drives at a few railway stations. But for how long can they be stopped?” she asked.
Hawker’s stalls destroyed by the bulldozer at Dum Dum Station. Photo: By arrangement.
Chatterjee highlighted how under BJP’s ‘Amrit Bharat Station’ project, railway stations are being transformed into glittering modern facilities, except with a few crucial caveats. “What is it if not an attempt to clear the way for corporate interests like Adani and Ambani to set up business while snatching away the daily bread of thousands of poor families,” she asked.
Several hawkers at Howrah, Sealdah, and Dum Dum stations told this reporter that their association with the railways goes back many years.
“We have developed a deep bond with passengers as well. We are often the first to assist them in times of need and regularly contribute to their safety and well-being. Did the railway and state administration consider this even once before carrying out these eviction drives?” said Madan Karmakar, a banana-seller at the Howrah Station.
For many, the bulldozing of their stores was a brutal shock.
Dulal Chakraborty, a hawker who sells chhole-bhaturey – chickpea presented with fried bread – at Sealdah Station, said, “My entire family voted for the BJP. The day after the election victory, I joined the celebratory procession, covered in saffron colours. BJP leaders had assured us that no hawker would have to pay extortion money to continue earning a living at the station.”
Chakraborty added that although he had heard of the phrase “bulldozer raj,” he did not associate it with a reality close to him.
“After coming to Bengal, the BJP has driven a bulldozer........