With barely one year left to retire from service, forest officer Jagannath Saha was assigned to chase away elephants from localities. However, the 59-year-old forester found that the BJP is the better platform to play a role in driving out the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) from the state.
Citing dissatisfaction with his latest assignment. Saha, the beat officer of Dalgaon wildlife branch in north Bengal, was recently transferred to a role that requires him to chase away elephants from villages. Feeling insulted and overburdened at this stage of his career, he has taken a drastic step by aligning himself with the BJP on Tuesday.
Saha, deeply frustrated with his latest assignment, expressed his disappointment. "I have been handling responsibilities in the Dalgaon forest department for years. Now, as I approach retirement, I am suddenly transferred to the wildlife branch and given the task of chasing elephants. At the age of sixty, how can I manage such physically demanding work?" he said.
He believes this decision has undermined his dignity and prompted his unexpected political move.
Reacting to Saha’s decision, BJP district president Bapi Goswami remarked, "The TMC no longer respects honest individuals. That is why people from different backgrounds, including government officials, are joining the BJP in large numbers. Today, an experienced forest officer has taken a stand against the government's unfair treatment by joining our party."
Meanwhile, Saha's defection has not gone unnoticed by the ruling party and its affiliated organisations.
Sanjay Singh, district president of the government employees' association aligned with the ruling party, strongly criticised his move. "What Saha has done is unbfair. We will demand legal action against him," he stated.
North Bengal turned out to be BJP’s stronghold since 2019 general elections as the saffron camp had bagged all eight Lok Sabha seats in the electoral exercise six years ago. In the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, the party secured victory in seven seats in the region.
In another development in the same region, Kalipada Roy, head of Shalbari 2 Gram Panchayat under the Trinamool-run Banarhat Block, visited the BJP's Jalpaiguri district office and joined the party along with nearly 100 TMC workers, including a panchayat member. The political shake-up continued as, later that day, Jagannath Saha also joined the BJP voluntarily, adding to the growing number of defectors.
With political realignments intensifying in the region, the incident highlights growing dissatisfaction among government employees, adding another dimension to the shifting political landscape in West Bengal.
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