Bengal even bans Tibetan protests

ONE state from which the Tibetans would have expected some sympathy was West Bengal , what with its pro-proletariat CPM-led government. But then the Marxists are more pro-China than pro-people. So, the state known for never-ending bandhs and agitations for the smallest of causes has gone to the extent of banning protest rallies by Tibetans against the Chinese occupation. No wonder, China is pleased and its consul-general has said it in so many words. But the fatwa which has been lauded by the Chinese masters may be despised by lovers of democracy and freedom which the Marxists otherwise swear by. It is very much the right of the government to maintain law and order but it is in the wrong when it tries to do so by curtailing basic freedom. Needless to say that the retrograde step will tell upon its people-friendly image and the carefully crafted credentials as champions of independence.

Ironically, it did not show the same alacrity in banning protests by hooligans targeting Taslima Nasreen. Not only were they allowed to hold boisterous protests, the West Bengal government even made the Bangladeshi writer pack her bags and leave. All that proves that the government has two entirely different sets of rules, which it applies depending on considerations of convenience, not principles.

In Taslima Nasreen’s case, even the Union government had turned coy. But as far as the protests by the Tibetans are concerned, the Centre has refused to toe the Bengal line. It must go a step further and show the mirror to the comrades extending support to it from outside. Nothing will be out of the ordinary in that. After all, the communist parties have been criticising it all this while and issuing threats to pull the rug on an almost daily basis.