You can choose courage or you can choose comfort, but you cannot choose both. Septuagenarian Bipul Dasgupta unhesitatingly chose courage as the frail individual stood in the path of vandals about to pull down a book stall selling Leftist literature during the pujas.
Together with the tragic stampede at Chorbagan and the attack on books stalls, Dasgupta shared space in the eye of storm. His head was bloodied but unbent.
A lifelong CPI(M) wholetimer, his Gandhian protest appealing to the better sense of those seeking to sack a book stall in North 24 Parganas drew unstinted praise from activists and fellow travellers. His standing up to be counted is a beacon of inspiration.
Book stalls set up by CPI(M), CPI(M-L), SUCI and Forward Bloc found themselves to be targets of vandals without a flag. The occurance was common during the puja days be it Kolkata, its suburbs or the districts.
When a group of. berserk youths descended on a CPI(M) book stall at Nagerbazar in North 24 Parganas, they found an old man between themselves and their target. The group stood on their tracks as Dasgupta repeatedly requested them with folded hands not to destroy the books.
Pointing out that stall had books other than party literature, he said that people cutting across communities buy books from this stall. One has to read to usher in development and why should you not be part of this process, he asked the belligerent group.
If his words did not deter the group, it pumped fresh enthusiasm in the organisers sails. The stall was reopened the next day.
It did not sit well with the local people. All the books being sold out is a pointer to their protest.
The attack on the book stalls is not an overnight phenomena. Chief minister Subhendu Adhikari had called upon community puja organisers not to let Left parties open their book stalls unless they state it is on the occasion of Durgotsav.
These stalls state that it is on the occasion of Saradotsav. The matter went to the court and the CPI(M) did not get a favourable order.
But it let the Left to paint the BJP with an anti-book image. Kolkata prides itself with being the cultural capital of the country.
As for Dasgupta, he has taken things in his stride. I will again try to protect the book stalls if such attacks are repeated, he said.
But his singular act of courageous defiance has set the ball rolling. A march by the Left and .embers of the civil society themed “Let’s Walk for Books” is scheduled to be taken out on October 29.
It is going to be taken out from College Street. This is in the fitness of things as the area is popularly known as “boipara”
If chief minister Adhikari is brushing aside Dagupta’s act and sentiments, there are takers for it in the saffron camp. State finance minister Swapan Dasgupta has said that his head drops in shame at the incidents of vandalism, senior RSS functionary and physicist Jishnu Basu too condemned the incident.
Meanwhile, Bipul Dasgupta better known as Bujuda said that he is at a loss to understand why books like Ramayan and Mahabharat found themselves at the mercy of “book haters”. They said anti-national books were being sold, he recalled.
But can these epics together with the works of Rabindranath and Sarat Chandra be stated to be anti-national, he asked. I hope better sense will prevail, he added.
The attack brings out the difference between the Left and the Right, Dasgupta said. We the Leftists seek to unite the people, he said in a voice ringing with conviction.
An yawning credibility gap exists between the people and the CPI(M) which has only one legislator in the state Assembly. But with supporters like Dasgupta in their ranks, the dominant Left Front partner has no need to despair.
