Mamata Banerjee: Writer, poet, nation's Didi and indomitable fighter

PTI photo

New Delhi: Congratulations started pouring in from all corners for Trinamool Congress supremo and Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee with the party's victory imminent in West Bengal assembly election, counting of votes for which is currently underway. According to trends available for 284 out of 292 constituencies in the state, the party was leading in 202 seats, while the BJP was leading in 77. However, Mamata lost the Nandigram battle against her former protege-turned-BJP rival Suvendu Adhikari in Nandigram by over 1600 votes.

Mamata chose Nandigram over her home turf Bhabanipur seat

Making the power battle more interesting, Mamata chose Nandigram over her home turf Bhabanipur seat this time to test her fate in the 2021 elections. It was the agitation in Nandigram and Singur against the Left government's land acquisition policies that made Mamata Banerjee the Chief Minister of West Bengal.

Further, Mamata's poll campaign this time got a new dimension with a wheelchair after she suffered an injury in March, 2021 while campaigning in Nandigram. It is worth mentioning that the West Bengal Chief Minister spared no dais to launch scathing attacks on Prime Minister Modi. However, the Modi-Mamata battle was quite visible even before the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. She played an instrumental role in bringing together all opposition parties against the Centre prior to the 2019 general elections.

The seventh-term MP also has been among the first key figures who heavily criticised the central government in issues starting from demonetisation to Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and lockdown to fuel prices. Her fighting spirit and mass appeal have made her one the tallest opposition figures in the current political arena.

Mamata Banerjee started her political career as a Youth Congress worker in the 1970s. She quickly rose the ranks and became the general secretary of Mahila Congress and later All India Youth Congress. In 1984 she was elected as a member of parliament in the 8th Lok Sabha becoming one of India`s youngest parliamentarians. She founded the All India Trinamool Congress in 1997 after a disagreement with Congress.

Mamata worked with three PMs

Mamata Banerjee worked with three Prime Ministers including PV Narasimha Rao, Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Dr Manmohan Singh. She had been a Union Minister in both National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and United Progressive Alliance (UPA) governments and held portfolios like Human Resource Development, Youth Affairs and Sports, Women and Child Development, Coal and Mines and the Railways. 

Notably, she was the first woman to become a railway minister in the country. The Time Magazine named her among the 100 most influential people in the world in 2012.

Hailing from a lower-middle-class family, Mamata Banerjee worked as a milk booth vendor to battle poverty. Her father passed away due to the lack of treatment when she was just 17. The fighter in her never let the barriers dominate her. She continued her education and earned a Bachelor's degree in History, a Master's degree in Islamic History and degrees in Education and Law from the University of Calcutta. She also worked as a stenographer and a private tutor before joining full-time politics.

Another disposition of Mamata Banerjee is her minimalist lifestyle. Despite being the Chief Minister, she still lives in her ancestral terracotta-tiled roof house at Kolkata`s Harish Chatterjee Street. White cotton sarees having mono-colour borders and slippers are all that define the fashion statement of Mamata Banerjee.

A self-taught painter, poet and writer

The West Bengal Chief Minister is also a self-taught painter, poet and writer. She has authored more than 100 books. She is also tech-savvy and remains active on social media. The Trinamool Supremo is also known for her walkathons or marches. Here it needs to be mentioned that she walks five-six kilometres on a treadmill every day. 

Meanwhile, the 'Khela' of power in West Bengal will come to an end today with Mamata Banerjee likely to return as the Chief Ministr of Bengal for the third consecuive term.