In an unprecedented move, the calcutta high court has had to invoke its constitutional authority to bring order where the mamata Banerjee-led West bengal government has completely abdicated its responsibility. The court, alarmed by the "grave and volatile" situation in Murshidabad, has ordered the deployment of 8 companies of the Border Security Force (BSF) and over 1,000 police personnel. This is not merely a law and order failure—it is the collapse of constitutional governance in a sensitive border region.
Mamata Govt Under Fire: Governance or Anarchy?
Time and again, mamata Banerjee’s administration has been accused of politicizing the police, shielding rioters, and suppressing dissent under the garb of democratic governance. Murshidabad’s descent into chaos is the latest and most glaring example of a state teetering on the edge of mob rule.
When a high court says, "We cannot keep our eyes shut," it is effectively indicting the state government for willful blindness or worse—complicity. This isn’t the first time West bengal has seen premeditated violence go unchecked. The panchayat elections, post-poll violence of 2021, and numerous communal flare-ups have painted a consistent picture: the state government is either grossly incompetent or dangerously partisan in maintaining public order.
Judiciary: The Last Guardrail?
The High Court’s intervention underscores a much larger constitutional malaise. When the executive—both at the state and central levels—fail in their primary duties, the judiciary is forced to step beyond its traditional boundaries. This is not judicial overreach by ambition, but judicial compulsion by necessity.
Historically, in post-Emergency india or during the punjab insurgency, the Centre used its powers under Article 355 and 356 to enforce order and hold states accountable. When gujarat burned in 2002, the judiciary demanded accountability but the executive too acted swiftly. The current central government's silence is shocking by comparison.
Where are the investigative teams? Where is the home Ministry's explanation sought from the state? Where is Article 355 being invoked to ensure the security of citizens in a border district? The Centre’s apathy is indistinguishable from cowardice. Its reluctance to enforce accountability empowers state-level misgovernance and emboldens lawlessness.
The Erosion of Constitutional Norms
Let it be said clearly: the mamata banerjee administration’s failure in Murshidabad is not an isolated lapse. It is the latest chapter in a broader pattern of deliberate erosion of state machinery, driven by vote-bank politics and cloaked in populist rhetoric. And when such erosion meets a complacent Centre, the judiciary is forced to hold a broken republic together.
This is not sustainable.
Final Word
If the judiciary has become the final arbiter of law and order in West bengal, it is not because of ambition but due to the state’s failure and the Centre’s inaction. This is not just a state’s crisis—it is a constitutional emergency in slow motion.
The time for muted observations is over. The Centre must act, the mamata government must be held accountable, and the people of Murshidabad must no longer be left to fend for themselves.
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