The Trinmul Congress workers have unleashed a trail of violence against opposition parties in West Bengal which is highly condemnable and absolutely unacceptable.  But, Bengal has a legacy of political violence and the history goes back since ninety hundred and five when Lord Curzon divided Bengal region leading to huge violence. Since then Bengal has been severely burning under violence. Though Bengal is a home to stalwarts Ravindra Nath Tagore, Subhash Chandra Bose and likes, the violence has not been abandoned by the people of Bengal.  Remember, the Naxalite movement had born in Bengal itself in sixties and seventies whose aim was to kill imperialists. The same tradition is run by first left parties and later TMC workers. In fact, TMC under Mamta Banarjee’s leadership emerged to power by retaliating lefts violence by more violence. Mamta Banarjee’s workers are now killing BJP workers, vandalizing their offices and burning their homes. This is unacceptable. Nobody has given right to Mamta’s workers to physically eliminate opposition parties. Ever since the Trinamool Congress (TMC) swept to victory in the West Bengal assembly elections, the state has witnessed unacceptable political violence, directed largely at workers of other parties in the statewith the BJP claiming that six of its workers have been killed. This is frenzy and it can’t be allowed in any part of the country. The TMC has rejected the allegations, but in light of the evidence available and the fact that it remains in power in the state,  the denial does not appear credible. From Naxalites to left parties and now to TMC, the legacy of violence has been running relentlessly in Bengal. This is the region where Ravindra NathTagore had established Shanti Niketan which gives the most valuable experience of ultimate peace. But, TMC workers have been a blot on this peace loving legacy. The  machinery of violence  was imported, almost whole-scale, by the TMC — and the party unleashed a high degree of violence, both explicit and implicit, once it came to power in 2011. The aim was to weaken rivals and send a message to supporters of other political formations that there would be a cost to challenging Ms Banerjee. This violence was most visible in the 2018 panchayat elections, and was among the reasons for the growth of the BJP in the state. The TMC won a legitimate mandate in the 2021 assembly polls — but clearly, its political victory has not altered the political culture of the party and the state. The triumph appears to have emboldened TMC workers to go after those who dared to challenge the party’s local hegemony. But the violence is not just an effort to seek revenge or teach the Opposition a lesson, but also an attempt to consolidate power on the ground to stifle all dissent and stamp on the right of citizens to exercise free political choice. The top leadership of the party is either complicit in this violence or is unwilling to stop it — but in any case, the buck stops with Ms Banerjee. Unless she cracks down on the violence immediately, West Bengal’s chief minister, irrespective of her election success, will lose her moral and democratic standing. Mamta  has termed the violence as sporadic which shows how she herself is furious with BJP. For the first time, she has got formidable opposition and so she may have lose her mental balance. In last assembly, the opposition parties left and Congress were like toy politicians for her. Now, for the first time, a strong opposition has emerged in Bengal. TMC workers may be finding such formidable opposition as unbearable. But, they should not be allowed the violence. Otherwise, if center imposes president’s rule, Mamta should not blame as murder of democracy.