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21 August 2024 at 10:20:16 am

Grim Reckoning

The heckling of Trinamool Congress MP Abhishek Banerjee during the latter’s visit to Sonarpur is a stark reminder that fear has an expiry date. For years, West Bengal’s politics has been defined by intimidation. First the Communist, and later during Mamata Banerjee’s TMC regimes, the state’s political discourse has been overwhelmingly accompanied by violence, cadre dominance, partisan policing and a culture in which dissenters were expected to keep their heads down and their opinions to...

Grim Reckoning

The heckling of Trinamool Congress MP Abhishek Banerjee during the latter’s visit to Sonarpur is a stark reminder that fear has an expiry date. For years, West Bengal’s politics has been defined by intimidation. First the Communist, and later during Mamata Banerjee’s TMC regimes, the state’s political discourse has been overwhelmingly accompanied by violence, cadre dominance, partisan policing and a culture in which dissenters were expected to keep their heads down and their opinions to themselves. Whether in villages, municipalities or university campuses, countless Bengalis, especially the Hindu community, have complained that political power was exercised not only through the ballot box but through fear during the TMC rule. Against this backdrop, the scenes that unfolded during Abhishek Banerjee’s Sonarpur visit was a symbolic moment. The TMC political class that once inspired fear suddenly found itself confronting fearlessness and the ire of ordinary citizens. Trinamool leaders accustomed to hectoring and threatening the public were forced to face its ire as Abhishek was heckled and pelted with eggs. The Trinamool Congress would be mistaken if it dismisses the episode as an isolated incident. Across West Bengal after the polls, there is a palpable anger against TMC leaders and their henchmen. That simmering rage appears increasingly difficult to contain. For years, Abhishek Banerjee had projected himself as the heir apparent to Bengal’s ruling establishment, speaking haughtily with the confidence of a man convinced that power was permanently on his side. Now that the TMC is out of power, Sonarpur offered a starkly different picture. It showed what happens when politicians who are accustomed to commanding the public are suddenly confronted by it. From the horrors of Sandeshkhali to the public fury unleashed after the R.G. Kar outrage, West Bengal witnessed episode after episode that laid bare the TMC’s intimidation and moral corruption. The crowd that confronted Abhishek Banerjee at Sonarpur was venting years of accumulated resentment against a political culture many Bengalis had come to associate with arrogance, patronage and strong-arm tactics. They reflected what a significant section of the public has increasingly come to see as the moral bankruptcy of a political order that believed it could rule indefinitely through fear and organisational muscle. Abhishek Banerjee, more than any other TMC leader, had became the face of that system. The hostility he encountered in Sonarpur was political payback delivered by a public no longer willing to whisper its anger. While no civilised society should endorse mob violence, no politician can expect public sympathy after years of bullying and intimidating citizens. He or she must realize that political arrogance has consequences and that public anger, when it finally erupts, grinds even the most powerful dynasties to dust. Abhishek Banerjee’s reception in Sonarpur may therefore prove to be more than an embarrassing political episode. It may become the defining image of Trinamool’s final decline and fall.

The Damsel In Distress

I don’t have an appetite for Hindi TV dailies. It’s frustrating to watch a family saga where a young, educated daughter-in-law clings to her selfish husband like a vine. Even after 365 episodes, she is still trying to win Pati ka Pyar and get rid of her Sautan. “Why can’t she just leave? Why can’t she take a stand, lead a good life with pride and bliss?” I asked my TV-glued mom and continued to read the Sunday paper, devouring every single line on world politics.


Lately, reading geopolitical news is getting equally irritating. You read about Mexico, Canada, Greenland, Venezuela, Iran, Afghanistan, Cuba, Nigeria, and Gaza and know that the obsession of one man to control far-flung territories is unceasing; his hunger for oil, rare earths, technology and power is not diminishing. And his allies, like an obedient wife, sit quietly, looking at his vision of “Greater Dominance”, or soft-soap him in between. Until last week, their strategy was to manage him personally over dinners and dally to save the security alliance and avoid decoupling!


Yes! In the wake of World War II, the United States revitalised Europe from vast devastation. It has steadfastly shielded these allies ever since then. The US has maintained over 100,000 troops and has extended its nuclear umbrella across the ocean to guard these 27. When Russia, China, North Korea, Israel and Iran were modernising their nuclear arsenals, this damsel in distress was waiting for the US to shoulder the burden of her defence. Last year, Trump’s warning to withdraw from NATO finally compelled Europe to increase its defence spending; however, it is still nowhere near Europe’s current needs. In 2025, Europe contributed barely one-fifth of NATO’s total procurement. These eight decades of dependency have granted America a durable ascendancy over Europe.


And in these 80 years, under American protection, Europe became a princess wrapped in cotton wool, totally dependent on America for energy, technology, digital infrastructure, and much more. Today, about 60 per cent of Europe’s liquefied natural gas demands are met through imports from the United States and is expected to rise to 75 per cent within the next four years. The reliance on digital services is even more concerning, with nearly 80 per cent of these services coming from the United States. With the AI boom, these numbers are expected to grow up to 95 per cent soon. In other words, entire Europe runs on American technology that could be turned off anytime if America chooses to.


In 2025, when investors were “Selling America”, the Europeans accounted for 80 per cent of the foreign buying of these US treasuries. The EU holds around $3 trillion (approximately Rs 274.78 trillion), and Europe as a whole has $9 trillion (approximately Rs 824.34 trillion) in US treasuries. Once regarded as a “safe haven” asset, has turned out to be a double - edged sword. Europe cannot hold these long, knowing high credit risks, nor go short on them, due to a fresh threat from Trump!


Over these years, the bloc failed to capitalise on opportunities to forge international relations and diversification, and moved further away from multilateralism, nurturing a unipolar system. Apart from unipolarity, the EU’s international trade faces significant headwinds due to high taxes and complex rules.


In 2025, when Trump’s tariff threat brought global turmoil, neither the EU condemned America’s selective targeting and sanctions nor pushed for WTO reforms; it opted to appease Trump and negotiate bilateral deals instead. Trump targeted Iranian nuclear facilities during the ceasefire; at the beginning of 2026, Trump conducted a military operation in Venezuela that led to civilian and military deaths, and captured the Venezuelan president. He imprisoned the president and his wife without a trial. Trump encouraged a revolt in Iran and now appears to be establishing an alternative forum to the United Nations. And in response to all of these, European leaders resorted to flattery or chose to stay silent rather than calling for International law reforms!


Trump’s fixation on Greenland and Canada is known. His reluctance to maintain traditional alliances is apparent. With his MAGA motto, he departed from established norms, broke WTO rules, violated international laws and directly engaged adversaries. And yet Europe remained willfully ignorant; it chose to live in a castle heavily guarded by Americans. It was only when those guards turned against them that they realised the urgent need for reforms in international law and trade.


Trump’s recent reversal on Greenland and punitive tariffs against Europe cannot be attributed to European resistance or their toothless threat to withdraw from NATO. It was a typical Trumpian trap: he unleashes bold threats, acts unpredictably, and often secures precisely what he wants without much negotiation. Dependency weakens bargaining power, and now, when the EU is planning to permanently immobilise the Rs. 30.77 trillion worth of Russian assets, the European option of leaving NATO is totally off the table.


Now, in response to Trump’s retreat, as expected, the EU has also suspended all anti-pressure measures, including counter tariffs, trade deal freezes, procurement limitations, market access restrictions, and an anti-coercion mechanism. It seems Davos-fuss has fizzled out too soon. This troubled partnership may not dissolve, but sooner or later, the EU will have to diversify away from America to reduce its vulnerability and prosper.


My mother remarked, “Because the damsel is dependent, not a courageous knight.” Now, let’s wait and see what the “mother of all deals” has to say.


(The writer is a foreign affairs expert. View personal.)

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