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Etymologically the word 'Mission' means a divinely ordained work in life. Whether an invisible entity, universally identified as 'divinity', exists or not is best left to individual perception or belief. But in current political parlance of Tripura 'Mission-2008' has come to mean the task of unseating the left front in the upcoming assembly polls , espoused by opposition Congress.
The coinage of the highly pretentious term is also rooted in a history of sorts. It was July 2005 when a new incumbent had been anointed as the
Supreme Pontiff of state Congress and in his infinite wisdom or, inter alia, being carried away by the heady and potentially lucrative appointment, the Pontiff had introduced this new coinage to Tripura's political idiom.
Altogether twenty eight months have passed since the Mission's flag had been unfurled but with the assembly polls barely four months away the Missionaries seem to have already lost breath . What emerges prominently from the balance sheet of twenty eight months is a litany of negatives connected with desperate attempts to snatch power and equally stubborn efforts
at
self-preservation. Right from day one the ‘Lion of the North’ and erstwhile custodian of state Congress had declared war on his successor. Within a few months he was enthusiastically joined by comrades-in-sulking with eyes set on the lucre overflowing from Delhi in the form of monthly grants and election expenses. But the pretenders made one cardinal error : there were too many of them aspiring for a single post and they failed to reach a consensus on a single name as replacement. Even when Oscar Fernandez had proposed a name on his own the ambitious quintet comprising four sitting MLAs and a former MLA kept mum, giving the unmistakable signal that they were-as they continue to be-a hopelessly disunited lot.
The Supreme Pontiff had started the ball rolling ,of course, by fragmenting the party units among loyalists , dissidents and fence-sitters soon after assuming charge . Paralysis of the organizational structure spawned by this self-serving process worsened as thirty seven elected block committees approved by the AICC failed to find favour with the
Pontiff who floated parallel committees of politically discredited people owing allegiance only to his exalted self.
The same sequence of events followed each other in quick succession as recriminations within the state and deputations in Delhi continued through the past one and half year even as the much-vaunted Mission continued to recede into the background.
The Pontiff , in the mean time, had run amok with guffaws galore on public forum : in a rally at
Kumarghat in July this year he had attributed the success of female students in university and TBSE exams to their sale of bodies , sparking statewide student protests . Worse things followed and the inevitable realization soon dawned on the workers that the synonym for 'Mission' in the context of Tripura is 'Mirage'.
As the isolation from the rank and file and the majority of leadership grew in intensity, desperation dictated the course of events . Two days ahead of 'Durga Puja' former minister Jawhar Saha , till then a prominent dissident , was beaten up in
broad day light in front of the Missionary centre in Amarpur town by Pontiff's men as part of a calculated attempt to terrorise him into surrender. Unable to bear with the idea of missing nomination Saha made a volte face and dived straight at his tormentor's feet to make up . Five years ago he had been let down by an ally who had pocketed the entire amount of Rs 3 lakhs in stead of handing it over to ‘invisible but designated friends’ as agreed to earlier .
Another Drama of the Absurd was enacted on November 2 when former MLA Tapas De, a gentle and elderly man passionately in love with Congress, was covered with dirt by two motor bike-borne miscreants deputed allegedly by the Pontiff and his heir-apparent in the heart of Agartala town
. This was followed on November 6 by the gutting of an office opened in Sonamura by Mujibur Islam Mazumder , an aspirant for nomination in Boxanagar constituency, allegedly by the followers of his long-time rival and former MLA Billal
Mia, acting presumably at the behest of the Pontiff. Another bizarre incident marred the same day in Kakrabon as an elderly Muslim lady was pushed and jostled by a local Congress worker in front of an office where hearing on enrolment in the electoral roll had been going on. The sub-title to the Drama of the Absurd is now loud and clear :'Misguided Mission in tatters' as prominent Congress leaders confront threat of attacks and public humiliation from within . A facade of unity and restraint will, however, remain in place as the lure of monthly grant, rich proceeds from nomination sale , ‘collection’ from market and lion's share of the election fund is irresistible. The crucial morale emanating from the pompous and essentially hollow Mission is poignant: dreams cost nothing but often degenerate into nightmares.
This
article contains only the personal opinion of the author. For
reaction the author can be contacted at
dajjal2007@rediffmail.com
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