Three years in a Union minister’s chair seems to have given Bharatiya Janata Party leader Nisith Pramanik his much-needed confidence to revisit the doorsteps of his voters and seek re-election to the lower house of Parliament.
Or so, feels the incumbent MP from Cooch Behar on whose shoulders the party’s electoral fortunes in north Bengal largely rest, notwithstanding the fact that Pramanik’s total political career is less than a decade old.
“My days, first as an MP and subsequent to the Covid-19 outbreak as a minister, have been a learning curve all through,” Pramanik told reporters, “and the intense learning in various sensitive aspects of statecraft during this time has made me confident to implement fresh ideas in that domain if people re-elect me to Parliament.”
The 38-year-old leader, who has served as a Union minister of state in both the Home Ministry as well as the Union Ministry of Sports and Youth Affairs, asserted that his opportunity to work with Home Minister Amit Shah has allowed him to experience deep insight into sensitive matters like border security, working with central agencies and policies concerning India’s internal security.
“Amit Shah is an institution by himself. I am fortunate to have been part of a large thought process that’s shaping the future of our nation. I have been tested both on the floor of Parliament, where I have had to answer tough questions from senior members, and off it. I think I have shaped up well to play an effective role in national politics,” Pramanik said during an interview.
A former Trinamool Congress youth leader who joined the BJP following his expulsion after the 2018 panchayat polls in West Bengal, Pramanik stunned his nearest Trinamool Congress rival Paresh Adhikary with a winning margin of over 54,000 votes in the 2019 general elections.
“I have never skipped a step in climbing the political ladder, in organisational as well as electoral politics,” Pramanik said, justifying his grip over the political landscape of Cooch Behar that, he claimed, made up for his relative lack of experience compared to some of the other leaders in the state.
“My days in politics could be fewer than some of the others in this state. But I have never remained detached from the masses. My sustained connection with my people enables me to understand their pulse and emotions closely,” Pramanik claimed by way of his USP as a grassroots leader.
In his nomination affidavit though, the BJP leader declared that he has 14 criminal cases pending against him, nine of which were registered between 2018 and 2020. The cases range from attempt to murder and rioting to house trespass and unlawful assembly.
“These are false cases and lodged with the motive of political vendetta,” Pramanik said, maintaining such ignominies are part and parcel of opposition politics in West Bengal.
“Such petty politics do not dominate my thoughts anymore. I am focused on how well I can do my bit to contribute to Modiji’s call for ‘Viksit Bharat’ and achieve his dream to turn the country into a developed nation before we observe the centenary of our Independence in 2024,” Pramanik said.
His opponent in the fray, TMC’s Jagadish Basunia, however, thinks the BJP leader has already failed his task.
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