Just a few moments before 1.01 pm on the sunny, humid afternoon of 20 May in Kolkata, Chief Minister-designate Mamata Banerjee did something quite extraordinary. Before taking the oath of office at this designated auspicious time, she walked up to Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, whom she was about to replace as chief minister, as well as the other top leaders of the Left Front that had ruled West Bengal for 34 long years, and greeted them with a formal namaste. This was a remarkable gesture in a political landscape that has long been marred by personal innuendo and lack of political courtesy.
West Bengal voted for paribartan, or change, and the new chief minister believes that she is the agent of that change – in all respects. As such, she had sent her personal emissary to invite the outgoing chief minister for her swearing-in ceremony. 'There are many things to change,' Mamata told this reporter in Kolkata. 'Showing courtesy to my political opponents is definitely one of them. They have insulted me every day, but I cannot make that mistake. Kolkata was once the seat of culture in India, but we have lost all that – you know the culture that the Left Front propagated. But make no mistake: we will regain Kolkata's earlier status.'
Despite appearing to have a widespread popular mandate, however, as an agent of change, 'Didi', as she is popularly known, faces many challenges. From a crippled state economy to a tottering education and health system, and an overall lack of discipline and work ethic. West Bengal has been on the verge of administrative collapse for many years. 'It's a miracle that this state still runs,' says Soumitra Ray, lead singer of the popular Bengali band Bhoomi. He too is focused on restoring a tarnished image. 'With Didi, the expectations are sky-high' he continues. 'We all know that she has an unenviable job on hand, but she has the single-minded determination to bring back Bengal's glory.'
Mamata's magnanimity notwithstanding, it took Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee just a week after the swearing-in to note, 'I pity her. We will keep a close watch on her performance.' But there is no gainsaying the fact that Mamata's performance in the first few weeks on the job was remarkable. She held two rounds of bipartite talks and managed a quick-fix of the long-festering problems in the Darjeeling Hills (see accompanying story by Udhyan Chamling Rai). Even Roshan Giri, secretary-general of the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha, standing by her side, nodded his approval for the 'magic formula'.