Kolkata: From hosting public reception for Soviet leaders Nikita Krushchev and Nikolai Bulganin to holding mammoth political rallies – many of them on anti-central government planks, the sprawling Brigade Parade Ground in the heart of the metropolis is steeped in history.
A day before it welcomes stalwarts from a wide spectrum of political parties, the 18th century colonial era venue looks majestic as labourers and volunteers work at a frantic pace to give the final shape to the giant stages and other makeshift facilities.
The mega rally, convened by West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee for showcasing a united stand against the centre’s ruling BJP in the coming general elections, is being billed as the biggest in the venue.
However, a time travel to the past brings out the rich history of the ground, located in the backdrop of the iconic Victoria Memorial and the Indian Museum, and under the control of the Indian Army whose Eastern Command headquarters Fort William lie in the vicinity.
Developed as a parade ground of the forces at the Fort William in the second half of the 18th century by the British after their victory in the battle of Plassey, the ground perhaps hosted one of its first political meetings in 1919, when Chittaranjan Das and other nationalist leaders railed against the Rowlatt Act before the Ochterlony Monument (now called Shaheed Minar).
A landmark meeting was the one on November 29, 1955, when Soviet premier Nikolay Aleksandrovich Bulganin and First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union Krushchev received a tumultuous adulation as they were felicitated by then Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru.
On February 6, 1972, a million people cheered wildly as the Prime Minister of newly liberated Bangladesh Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and his Indian counterpart Indira Gandhi held a joint meeting on this parade ground.
Then came the 1970s, the emergency in the country, followed by the defeat of the Congress in 1977 both at the Centre and in West Bengal where the Communist Party of India-Marxist-led Left Front took over the reins of power. As part of its anti-Centre and anti-Congress planks, it played a prominent role in organising opposition conclaves and conference of non-Congress(I) parties and chief ministers.
One such conclave was held in Kolkata in January, 1984. The Speakers included stalwarts like Jyoti Basu, N.T. Rama Rao, Ramakrishna Hegde, Farookh Abdullah, Chandra Shekhar and E.M.S. Namboodiripad.
Four and a half years later, the Shaheed Minar was witness to another gathering of opposition leaders after V.P. Singh resigned from Rajiv Gandhi’s Congress government .
The meeting at Shaheed Minar, convened by the state unit of the Jan Morcha to celebrate the Allahabad bypoll win, brought together opposition leaders of all shades — Atal Bihari Vajpayee, George Fernandes, Madhu Dandavate, V.P. Singh, Jyoti Basu, and other Left leaders.
Now, Mamata Banerjee has created for herself a political space where anti-BJP opposition leaders of practically all hues were likely to gather for her Brigade meeting on Saturday.
How far the meeting succeeds in realising her dream of emerging as the face of the Opposition after the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, only time can tell. (IANS)
