Buddhadeb the Convert

They say that when men are on their deathbed, they may suddenly find God. Well, it may be a sign that communism in W.Bengal is on its deathbed, now that Buddhadeb is suddenly becoming a convert to Modi's capitalism. This behaviour has been seen before in George Fernandes' embrace of BJP. But if W.Bengal Marxists draw particular inspiration from China, maybe enough of them envy its material progress, too. It remains to be seen whether he can hold the reins of power strongly enough to see any major initiatives through. On the other hand, nothing like a fresh influx of cash to grease that state machinery, and all the palms that go with it.