Nandigram burns again, death toll rises

Kolkata, Nov 7 (IANS): Thousands fled from their homes in Nandigram Wednesday to escape an offensive launched by the ruling Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) activists from the adjoining base of Khejuri to regain control of their lost ground.

'Four villagers have been killed since Tuesday in the Khejuri-Nandigram area. At least 10 people were injured, including a woman and a policeman. There has been tension since morning but there has been no firing,' East Midnapore Superintendent of Police S.S. Panda told IANS.

'Two of the killed were identified as Tushar Kanti Sahu and Nirapada Ghata but the other two we could not identify,' he said Wednesday.

'Nandigram has turned into a war zone. We are trying our best to control the situation,' West Bengal Home Secretary Prasad Ranjan Roy told reporters Tuesday.

Roy said police were taking positions to guard Tekhali Bridge to prevent further violence.

An English daily put Tuesday's toll at 10 but police have confirmed death of only four people, taking the toll in Nandigram violence to 32 since January when the region flared up over proposed land acquisition for a special economic zone (SEZ), including a chemical hub, a plan which was later scrapped by the state government in the face of stiff resistance.

Though the SEZ was scrapped, a turf battle continued in Nandigram between the CPI-M and the Trinamool Congress supported Bhumi Uchched Pratirodh Committee (BUPC) in the run-up to the Panchayat elections in May next year.

CPI-M supporters Tuesday torched house after house in Nandigram, about 150 km from Kolkata, as they advanced from adjoining Khejuri to regain control as villagers fled for their lives, carrying whatever they could, reports from Nandigram said.

Some 200 CPI-M men from Khejuri armed with long-range rifles, single-barrel guns, pipe guns and bombs Tuesday crossed the Talpatti canal at Bahargunj and attacked Satengabari, Brindabanchowk, Jambari, Girirbazar, Keyakhali, Simulkunda, Saifullachowk and Raynagar villages of Nandigram.

'It is a planned attack. The CPI-M has assembled its armed supporters to mount the attack with the backing of Eastern Frontier Rifles (EFR) and crush the opposition,' said West Bengal Public Works Department Minister Kshiti Goswami who belongs to the Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP), an ally of the CPI-M in the government.

According to one report, 30-year-old Manasi Das, in an advanced stage of pregnancy, was holding on to her four-year-old daughter Shiuli when two bullets pierced her thighs Tuesday. She hasn't seen her daughter since.

'Shots were being fired from Khejuri since early morning. From 8 a.m. the shouts of CPI-M workers drew near. I was hurrying out of the house with my daughter,' Manasi told a Kolkata daily from her bed at Tamluk Hospital.

'My husband Swapan had our six-year-old son Soumen with him. I was hit in the legs and collapsed. I have not met my daughter or any of my other family members since,' she said.

Most residents of BUPC-controlled areas of Satengabari, Girirbazar, Brindabanchowk and Jambari fled their homes Tuesday. They were given shelter in school buildings elsewhere.

The CPI-M has been launching attacks from Khejuri where about 1,500 party supporters are living in refugee camps after they had to flee Nandigram since the flare-up in January.

On March 14, at least 14 villagers were killed in police firing in Nandigram when they resisted the entry of policemen to the area.

West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharya has appealed to opposition parties to find a political solution to the Nandigram violence while seeking the presence of central security forces in the area.

© 2007 Indo-Asian News Service




CPI(M) 'recaptures' Nandigram bases

Indo-Asian News Service
Wednesday, November 7, 2007 (Kolkata)

Launching a massive offensive against the Trinamul Congress-backed group, the Communist Party of India -Marxist (CP-M) regained lost bases in West Bengal's Nandigram, as fresh violence claimed four lives in the trouble-torn area amid demands for central intervention by opposition leader Mamata Banerjee.

As violence escalated in Nandigram, veteran CPI(M) leader Jyoti Basu changed his stand and said deployment of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) should be postponed and if needed talks should be initiated with Banerjee for the third time to find a political solution.

''I have told the chief minister (Buddhadeb Bhattacharya) to postpone deployment of central forces in Nandigram. Instead, we have asked him to arrange an all-party meeting to restore peace in troubled areas. If needed, we can talk to Mamata Banerjee again though previous all-party peace talks failed,'' Basu said after meeting of the ruling Left Front.

Hours later, Banerjee called a press conference to demand deployment of the army in Nandigram under central supervision and invocation of Article 355 of constitution in the state which mandates the union government to protect states against internal disturbance. She, however, expressed her willingness to sit for talks if the same was held at Basu's initiative.

''We demand immediate central intervention in the state under Article 355,'' she said as she threatened to unleash an agitation which ''would be a free-for-all and with no idea what shape the same would take''.

Report of deaths

About 2,000 people fled from their homes in Nandigram since Tuesday to escape an offensive launched by CPI(M) activists from the adjoining base of Khejuri to regain control of their lost ground.

''Four villagers have been killed since Tuesday. There is a report of one more death but the same is unofficial,'' West Bengal Home Secretary Prasad Ranjan Roy said.

Roy virtually rebelled against the CPI(M)'s official stand and gave his own version of the situation in Nandigram. CPI(M) state secretary Biman Bose was quick to retort that the home secretary was not aware of the full facts in Nandigram.

''About 2,000 people, largely Bhumi Uchched Pratirodh Committee (BUPC) supporters, are homeless. The CPI-M has gained ground in Maheshpur and adjoining areas of Nandigram. Many CPI-M supporters have returned home,'' Roy said.

''Nandigram has turned into a war zone. We are trying our best to control the situation,'' he had said a day before.

Earlier, East Midnapore Superintendent of Police SS Panda said that besides the four deaths about 10 people were injured in the violence since Tuesday, including a woman and a policeman.

The death toll in Nandigram violence rose to 32 since January when the region flared up over proposed land acquisition for a special economic zone (SEZ), including a chemical hub, a plan that was later scrapped by the state government in the face of stiff resistance.

Though the SEZ was scrapped, a turf battle continued in Nandigram between the CPI(M) and the Trinamul Congress-supported BUPC in the run-up to the local body elections in May next year.

CPI(M) supporters on Tuesday torched house after house in Nandigram, about 150 km from Kolkata, as they advanced from adjoining Khejuri to regain control as villagers fled for their lives, carrying whatever they could, reports from area said.

Planned attack

Some 200 CPI(M) men from Khejuri armed with long-range rifles, single-barrel guns, pipe guns and bombs Tuesday crossed the Talpatti canal at Bahargunj and attacked Satengabari, Brindabanchowk, Jambari, Girirbazar, Keyakhali, Simulkunda, Saifullachowk and Raynagar villages of Nandigram.

''It is a planned attack. The CPI(M) has assembled its armed supporters to mount the attack with the backing of the Eastern Frontier Rifles (EFR) and crush the opposition,'' said West Bengal Public Works Department Minister Kshiti Goswami who belongs to the Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP), an ally of the CPI(M) in the government.

According to one report, 30-year-old Manasi Das, in an advanced stage of pregnancy, was holding on to her four-year-old daughter Shiuli when two bullets pierced her thighs Tuesday. She hasn't seen her daughter since.

''Shots were being fired from Khejuri since early morning. From 8 am the shouts of CPI(M) workers drew near. I was hurrying out of the house with my daughter,'' Manasi told a Kolkata daily from the Tamluk Hospital.

''My husband Swapan had our six-year-old son Soumen with him. I was hit in the legs and collapsed. I have not met my daughter or any of my other family members since,'' she said.

Most residents of BUPC-controlled areas of Satengabari, Girirbazar, Brindabanchowk and Jambari fled their homes Tuesday. They were given shelter in school buildings elsewhere.

The CPI-M has been launching attacks from Khejuri where about 1,500 party supporters are living in refugee camps after they had to flee Nandigram in January.

On March 14, at least 14 villagers were killed in police firing in Nandigram when they resisted the entry of policemen to the area.

The chief minister has appealed to opposition parties to find a political solution to the Nandigram violence while seeking the presence of central security forces in the area.




Reports hint Maoist hand in Nandigram

Monideepa Banerjie
Thursday, November 8, 2007 (Nandigram)

The CPM has blamed hardline Maoist militants for the violence in Nandigram and now reports suggest that the outfit has penetrated into the violence-torn region.

Maoist training camps in West Bengal's Purulia district bordering Jharkhand have been around for years now.

According to intelligence sources, since February trained Maoists from these camps are filtering into Nandigram and joining hands with the anti-SEZ group, the Bhoomi Uchched Pratirodh Committee (BUPC) to keep the police out.

''We have information from various sources that some of the Maoist elements are there in Nandigram. To what extent they are effective and to what extent they are abetting or supporting this movement against the government - whatever the movement may be - is not entirely clear to us,'' said Amit Kiran Deb, Chief Secretary, West Bengal.

Till September, the presence of the Maoists in Nandigram was really nebulous. No one was sure who they were, where they were, what they were doing and what their resources were.

The breakthrough came on September 22 when prominent Maoist leader Ranjit Pal was spotted at Sonachura.

Pal has claimed he was involved in the killing of JMM MP Sunil Mahato at Jamshedpur on March 4 this year.

According to information available with NDTV, leadership of the Maoist movement in Nandigram is being given by a core group of 10 to 12 people, led by Arup and Tapashi.

Out of a total of 110 to 120 Maoists camping there, 20 to 25 are women. They have several frontal organizations including the Matangini Mahila Samiti and the Bandi Mukti Committee.

Intelligence agencies believe that the October 14 rally jointly held by the Maoists and the BUPC point to the Naxal involvement in the area.

In the recent past, the Maoists have opened a training centre at Ranichak in Nandigram itself. Local boys are allegedly being trained in the use of arms and also improvised landmines.

The Maoists came under attack from the Trinamool leader Mamata Banerjee, who promised to give all possible help to the administration if they began a crackdown on Maoists.


Governor discusses Nandigram with Buddhadeb

Sourav Sanyal, Monideepa Banerjie
Wednesday, November 7, 2007 (Kolkata)

West Bengal Governor Gopalkrishna Gandhi on Wednesday discussed violence in Nandigram with West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee.

''He has brought reports to the notice of the state government and the Government of India,'' a Raj Bhavan release said.

The Governor was observing the rapidly evolving developments closely, the release said.

Home Secretary P R Roy and the IGP A B Vohra also called on the Governor, he added.

Earlier on Wednesday, as CPI(M) activists blocked all entry points leading to the war zone. Trinamool Congress set up pickets along the roads, apparently to check vehicles for the illegal entry of firearms into the area.

Caught in the political cross fire, thousands of villagers whom are now sheltering at camps having lost their home and hearth.

Sixty-year old Bhushan Pramanik is lying like a vegetable since Sunday at the Nandigram Primary Hospital. Running for his life from armed men who set fire to his house, Bhushan suffered a stroke that has paralysed his right side and left him without speech.

''They were firing indiscriminately. Thousands of CP(M) cadre were firing at our home from the other side. They were looting and vandalizing our homes and setting them on fire. People were running for their lives leaving everything behind,'' said Madhuri Koyal, Resident, Nandigram.

The school at Nandigram has turned into a relief camp and thousands of terrified villagers - like this pregnant woman or this elderly man - have taken refuge in the classrooms. They are paying the price for living in a war zone.

''Bullets and bombs are raining where we live. We are being continuously fired at. I am not well. Where else could I have gone except for the relief camp,'' said Namita Mumian , Resident, Parulbari village.

''It is impossible to live with terror inflicted on us everyday by armed outsiders and continuous firing which is why we came straight to the relief camp,'' said Aurobindo Das, Resident, Jambari village.

A battleground since January over land acquisition, Nandigram is now witnessing a fight for turf by the CPI(M) and the Trinamool backed Bhoomi Uchched Pratirodh Committee or BUPC.

The Left, which held all 10 panchayats in the area is trying to regain ground lost to the BUPC after police firing on Match 14, 2007 left 14 dead.

''Some people are trying to create disturbance in Nandigram. They are trying to acquire Nandigram by any means. This is a political ploy,'' said Biswajit Maity, Resident, Nandigram.

At least 3,000 people are holed up in this camp alone. People, who have fled their homes and left behind everything fearing for their lives.

They just want peace and justice for the mindless bloodshed that Nandigram has witnessed for 11 long months. (With PTI inputs)


PM concerned over Nandigram deadlock

NDTV Correspondent
Wednesday, November 7, 2007 (Kolkata)

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has expressed concern over the continued violence in Nandigram.

In a letter to Trinamool Congress leader Partha Chatterjee, Singh wrote that he was concerned about the developments there and has asked Home Minister Shivraj Patil to look into it urgently.

The prime minister, however, hasn't said anything about deploying the CRPF in Nandigram.

Singh was replying to the letter written by Chatterjee, who wants the border between Khejuri and Nandigram be declared a disturbed area.

Meanwhile, CPM leader and former West Bengal Chief Minister Jyoti Basu has said the situation in Nandigram is not acceptable.

He however, has said Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee has been asked to postpone the deployment of central paramilitary forces at Nandigram to contain violence.

Condemning the spurt of violence that intensified since Sunday night, Basu said he had never seen an agitation where movement of police force was being blocked by digging roads.

''Trinamool has said that they will not allow anyone else to live there except their own supporters. Has anybody heard of such agitation? We cannot accept such agitation even if one hundred supporters of CPI(M) are killed'', he said.

But interestingly, while the Left Front has advised the chief minister against sending paramilitary forces for now, the CPM politburo in Delhi has asked the state government to send central security forces at the earliest.

In a statement, the politburo expressed deep concern at the recurring violence and blamed the Trinamool Congress for inciting tension with Maoist help to target political opponents.

The politburo said the state government should ensure the induction of the Central security forces in the area to restore normality and peace.

Tension prevails

On the ground, clashes were reported today from three villages in Nandigram. However, Inspector General (Law and Order) Raj Kanojia denied any fresh incident.

On their part, Trinamool Congress supporters took to the streets to protest the violence at Nandigram and blocked Howrah Bridge, Hazra and Syambazar leading to a traffic jam.

On Tuesday, the police couldn't even enter villages like Satengabari and Ranichak where the two opposing sides took on each other with gun and bombs and left three dead and at least 10 others injured.

On March 14, police firing and clashes between CPI(M) supporters and members of the Bhoomi Uchched Pratirodh Committee left 14 people dead in Nandigram. (With Agency Inputs)