How Bengal, a Land of Mighty Rulers, Was Born - News18
2 years, 7 months ago

How Bengal, a Land of Mighty Rulers, Was Born - News18

News 18  

It has been almost a year since unprecedented violence took place in West Bengal after the Assembly election results were announced. The golden era of Bengal that comprised rule of Vangas, Gauras, Gupta, Mauryas has largely been ignored and hence the rich cultural legacy doesn’t find much mention in present day discourse. Another 16th century Dutch Merchant Van Lindolan had termed Bengal as the ‘granary of the east’. Origin of the Word ‘Bengal’ There were several territorial divisions in ancient Bengal, the two most prominent among them were Vanga and Gaur. Abu’l Fazal has provided another interesting version about the origin of the word ‘Bengal’ in Ain-i-Akbari where he stated, “The original name of Bengal was ‘Bung’ and the suffx ‘al’ came to be added to it from the fact that the ancient kings of this land raised mounds of earth of 10 feet in height and 20 in breadth in lowlands at the foot of the hills which are called ‘al’.

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History of this topic

The Fate of Bengal
4 months, 1 week ago

The Fate of Bengal

The Hindu  

Travelling back to 1765, after the Battle of Buxar, Bengal – comprising West Bengal, Bihar, Odisha, Bangladesh, and Assam – came under British rule. The story of Bengal took a dramatic turn in the early 1900s with the controversial partition of the province, leading to a legacy of communal tension and unrest. The province was divided into two parts: Western …

West Bengal politics has to be dialogic even while remaining contentious
6 months, 2 weeks ago

West Bengal politics has to be dialogic even while remaining contentious

Hindustan Times  

Thinking of West Bengal, I have yet to find an analysis of a possible correlation between violence in electoral time and the electoral participation of common people. Widespread violence between supporters of the TMC and the BJP over alleged electoral malpractices in strife-torn Sandeshkhali marred the final phase of LS polls in West Bengal on Saturday, resulting in injuries to …

In West Bengal, caste links with Hindutva
7 months, 2 weeks ago

In West Bengal, caste links with Hindutva

Hindustan Times  

From a state known for the class politics of the Left, West Bengal now seems to have emerged as a new laboratory of identity politics. What West Bengal is currently witnessing is not conventional caste politics, but an extraordinary marriage between the politics of Hindutva and the politics of caste, where the former informs the logic underlying the latter. It …

Break the vicious cycle of violence in every poll
1 year, 5 months ago

Break the vicious cycle of violence in every poll

Hindustan Times  

This happened in the 1970s. Since then, I’ve been wrestling with one question: Why was so much money spent and blood spilt for an election to a post like a block pramukh? The violence during West Bengal’s panchayat elections has reignited this old debate. The woman’s brother-in-law proposed a three-pronged strategy: One, how they will prevent Opposition supporters from voting …

'Violence in Bengal is not accidental; it is state-sponsored murder of democracy': BJP unleashes attack on TMC
1 year, 5 months ago

'Violence in Bengal is not accidental; it is state-sponsored murder of democracy': BJP unleashes attack on TMC

Firstpost  

BJP leader Sambit Patra claimed that the ruling Trinamool Congress’ government in West Bengal’s ‘dadagiri politics’ was on even on the day of ballot counting Violence in West Bengal is “not accidental,” but is “a state- Patra’s statement came on the day when the counting of votes for the Bengal Panchayat polls were underway. “In West Bengal, elections and violence …

Violence is Mainstay of Bengal Politics, And BJP will Make This a Crucial Issue for 2024 Polls - News18
1 year, 5 months ago

Violence is Mainstay of Bengal Politics, And BJP will Make This a Crucial Issue for 2024 Polls - News18

News 18  

Twenty people were reportedly killed in violent clashes related to Panchayat elections in West Bengal until Monday. For the Opposition block, especially for the BJP, this election turns out to be a repetition of the 2018 Panchayat polls in terms of political violence. BJP, which has been designing its campaign on the issues of corruption, scams and the dynasty politics, …

DC Edit | Check political violence in Bengal, it's out of control
1 year, 5 months ago

DC Edit | Check political violence in Bengal, it's out of control

Deccan Chronicle  

Violence has become the hallmark of elections in West Bengal and the election to local self-government bodies this year does not show a break from the trend — as many as 20 people have been killed and hundreds injured with an equal number of lives lost in the run-up to the election held on Saturday. Clashes began immediately after the …

Bengal election violence: Why the courts had to step in to uphold democracy
1 year, 5 months ago

Bengal election violence: Why the courts had to step in to uphold democracy

Times of India  

Well-known journalist and political commentator Swapan Dasgupta has worked for many leading Indian publications, including The Times of India. The settling of political differences through murder, violent intimidation and administrative recrimination is by now a well-established phenomenon in this border state, its origins dating back to the mid-1960s when the Left upstaged the Congress. The violence invariably reaches a crescendo …

The changing economy of rural West Bengal
1 year, 5 months ago

The changing economy of rural West Bengal

The Hindu  

As panchayat elections are nearing in West Bengal — voting is on July 8 — three streams of political discourse are becoming more and more apparent across different platforms. The crisis of income in agriculture For an analysis of change in class structures, the first characteristic of rural West Bengal that stands out is a gradual, secular process of households …

BJP trying to create violence in West Bengal in lines of Manipur: CM Mamata Banerjee
1 year, 6 months ago

BJP trying to create violence in West Bengal in lines of Manipur: CM Mamata Banerjee

India TV News  

Mamata Banerjee on WB violence : West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today said that the BJP is trying to instigate violence between communities in West Bengal along the lines of Manipur. They are trying to create that violence here as they did in Manipur," the chief minister said while addressing a public meeting at Salboni in West Midnapore district. …

Spate of violence rocks West Bengal ahead of panchayat elections
1 year, 7 months ago

Spate of violence rocks West Bengal ahead of panchayat elections

The Hindu  

Published : May 19, 2023 16:00 IST - 6 MINS READ On May 1, Bijoy Krishna Bhuiyan, the BJP’s booth president of Moyna in Purba Medinipur district, was returning home with his wife and son when he was abducted allegedly by a large group of Trinamool party workers. Although the reason behind Shaw’s death is yet to be ascertained, the …

West Bengal's Law And Order Situation is a Ticking Time Bomb - News18
1 year, 7 months ago

West Bengal's Law And Order Situation is a Ticking Time Bomb - News18

News 18  

Last week, the Calcutta High Court mandated the National Investigative Agency to look into the incidents of communal violence that occurred during Ram Navami celebrations in Howrah and other areas of West Bengal. There is no denying that Banerjee is not the first politician and TMC is not the first political party to appease minorities in West Bengal politics. However, …

Why Muslims of Bengal Are Becoming Disenchanted With Trinamool Politics
1 year, 9 months ago

Why Muslims of Bengal Are Becoming Disenchanted With Trinamool Politics

ABP News  

For the ruling Trinamool Congress and its supremo Mamata Banerjee, the third term in West Bengal, which began in May 2021, is proving to be a tough one. Giving electoral prominence to BJP turncoats like Babul Supriyo, walking a soft Hindutva line, growing violence against minorities and increasing corruption charges against the Mamata Banerjee government are among the several reasons …

The north-south divide in West Bengal
1 year, 11 months ago

The north-south divide in West Bengal

The Hindu  

In the second week of December 2022, Gorkha Janmukti Morcha president Bimal Gurung organised a national seminar in New Delhi on the issue of Gorkhaland, which seeks a separate State to be carved out of territories of Darjeeling and Kalimpong districts of West Bengal. A few days after the convention, on December 28, when the Bharatiya Gorkha Prajatantrik Morcha and …

West Bengal Rampage: Is TMC Government Sowing the Seeds of India’s Partition in 21st Century? - News18
2 years, 2 months ago

West Bengal Rampage: Is TMC Government Sowing the Seeds of India’s Partition in 21st Century? - News18

News 18  

On October 9, Hindu households were ransacked, vehicles razed, and shops torched by the so-called oppressed Muslim minority in Mominpur, Dompara, and areas of West Bengal’s Ekbalpur, Kolkata over desecration of their flag. Consequently, the West Bengal Police imposed section 144 for two days in the Ekbalpur region of the state for two days starting October 10. The Calcutta High …

The Bengal Conundrum: Understanding State’s Communal Violence Through the 1946 Great Calcutta Killings
2 years, 6 months ago

The Bengal Conundrum: Understanding State’s Communal Violence Through the 1946 Great Calcutta Killings

News 18  

It has been a year since unprecedented violence took place in West Bengal after the Assembly election results were announced. The resolution passed on March 23, 1940 said, “…it is the considered view of this session of the All-India Muslim League that no constitutional plan would be workable in this country or acceptable to Muslims unless it is designed on …

The Bengal Conundrum: Battle of Plassey and the Myth of Siraj-ud-Daulah Being a Patriot
2 years, 7 months ago

The Bengal Conundrum: Battle of Plassey and the Myth of Siraj-ud-Daulah Being a Patriot

News 18  

It has been a year since unprecedented violence took place in West Bengal after the Assembly election results were announced. The infamous Battle of Plassey that was fought on June 23, 1757 by what many call ‘the last independent Nawab of Bengal’ Siraj-ud-Daulah was another turning point in the history of Bengal as it paved the way for sale of …

The Bengal Conundrum: How Bengal Suffered under Mughal Rule and Hindus Fought for Survival
2 years, 7 months ago

The Bengal Conundrum: How Bengal Suffered under Mughal Rule and Hindus Fought for Survival

News 18  

It has been a year since unprecedented violence took place in West Bengal after the Assembly election results were announced. To understand the composition of present day Bengali Hindu society, it is important to understand the influence of Vaishnavism as well as Sanskrit on Bengal’s cultural fabric. He goes on to say that “the new religion of Chaitanya has made …

Intolerance Towards the 'Other': Political Violence in Bengal Points to a Larger Problem
2 years, 8 months ago

Intolerance Towards the 'Other': Political Violence in Bengal Points to a Larger Problem

News 18  

The latest bout of political violence in West Bengal is gruesome, but follows the cycle of violence in Bengal, starting from before 1947. Political violence in Birbhum points to a larger problem— a climate of intolerance towards the “other.” This stems from essentially two ideologies, the first—which shows up under the decline of the Hindu population in Bengal— is rooted …

Demographic imbalance in West Bengal a growing menace: Report
2 years, 8 months ago

Demographic imbalance in West Bengal a growing menace: Report

Op India  

The demographic imbalance in West Bengal has become a growing cause of concern. Describing the unmatched scenic beauty of these small hamlets in West Bengal, the Organiser journalist said that there are limitless business opportunities here since the land in this area of West Bengal is very fertile and hundreds of small villages are attached to and dependent on each …

West Bengal Violence: MHA asks report from Governor Jagdeep Dhankar over law and order situation
3 years, 7 months ago

West Bengal Violence: MHA asks report from Governor Jagdeep Dhankar over law and order situation

India TV News  

The Union Home Ministry has asked West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankar to give a report on the law and order situation in the state, particularly the violence that took place following the election results last weekend, officials said on Thursday. The MHA has deputed a four-member team, led by an Additional Secretary level official including a Central Reserve Police Force …

West Bengal Assembly Elections 2021 | Those who believe in democracy support the Samyukta Morcha, says Bengal Congress chief
3 years, 8 months ago

West Bengal Assembly Elections 2021 | Those who believe in democracy support the Samyukta Morcha, says Bengal Congress chief

The Hindu  

The Samyukta Morcha is providing a real alternative to the people of West Bengal against the competitive communalism of the BJP and the Trinamool Congress, says West Bengal Pradesh Congress president Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, who has played a crucial role in forging the alliance of the Congress, the Left and the Indian Secular Front. We have never witnessed an Assembly …

Condition of Muslims in West Bengal: A reality check
3 years, 9 months ago

Condition of Muslims in West Bengal: A reality check

The Hindu  

The 2021 Assembly election in West Bengal is going to be historic because the Bharatiya Janata Party has for the first time emerged as the main challenger to the incumbent government. Bogey of infiltration If there had been a substantial infiltration in West Bengal, then the decadal growth rate of population in the State would have been significantly higher than …

Days of 'Khela' and 'Boma': What Bengal Needs is an End to Decades of Political Violence
3 years, 9 months ago

Days of 'Khela' and 'Boma': What Bengal Needs is an End to Decades of Political Violence

News 18  

In 1997, the government of West Bengal admitted on record in the state assembly that 28,000 political murders had been committed in the state since the Left Front came to power in 1977. How has India’s longest continuing nightmare of political violence been flying so smoothly under the ‘national’ radar? But the sections that talk about “death of democracy” or …

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