April 21, 2011
Abhishek Banerjee peps up campaign in Jadavpur
Kolkata, April 20: Neatly turned out in a starched kurta and jeans, he looked too young to slip into electoral politics The spring in his steps and the energy was more of an eager explorer than that of an aspiring leader. Even the familiar waving of hands was a bit hesitant, a trifle rehearsed. But Abhishek Banerjee, Mamata Banerjee`s nephew is clear about his goals and knows what he is up to. On Wednesday evening, he accompanied Trina mool Congress candidate and former bureaucrat Manish Gupta at a door-to-door campaign in Jadavpur. This was the youngster’s fifth out ing this poll season.
“Honestly, I am looking forward to more. Every meet ing and procession that have been a part of has been a learning experience for me. am learning the ropes and hopefully, will have learnt a lot by the time the polls come to an end,” said Banerjee, an MBA. It was the desire to witness and be a part of the transformation process in Bengal that brought him to politics, he says.
Banerjee made his foray into politics about two years ago, silently working back stage. It was earlier this month that he made his de but in electoral politics, leading a rally in support of the Trinamool candidate Javed Khan at Kasba. Ever since, he has been part of two mega processions, including one at Dum Dum where CPM heavyweight Gautam Deb dared Trinamool leaders to enter. “Not only did we take out a procession, it was joined by at least 40,000 people, which is an indication of things to come. We made it clear that the people of Bengal are looking for a change and that it’s near,” he rattled off as he shook hands with a local.
Veteran Gupta introduced Abhishek to voters. “This young man is Abhishek Banerjee and he has come to meet you,” Gupta told Runu Ghosh, a resident of Rabindra Pally. The housewife seemed pretty charmed by the youngster who smiled warmly with a namaskar. “My target are the younger people,” said Abhishek. “We need to reach out to them and convince them that our party is there to help. The younger generation has been very warm to me. There is a lot of frustration among them due to obvious reasons. We are carrying the message of a turnaround,” declared the young politician.
Will he be visiting all corners of the city? That won’t be necessary, he said. “I have been asked to visit only those constituencies where the candidates need support. Places where my presence could make a difference. I think that makes a lot of sense,” Abhishek signed off.
