Basu asks govt to restore peace in Nandigram, reject bandh

Kolkata, Jan 07 (UNI) CPI (M) State Secretary and Left Front Chairman Biman Basu today asked the West Bengal government to initiate all possible steps to restore peace in Nandigram and urged the people to discard the bandh call given by the opposition tomorrow.

Talking to newspersons here, Mr Basu said, ''On behalf of the party, we urge the government to take all possible measures to restore peace in Nandigram. The government has to take this responsibility and if necessary call for an all party meet to sit and discuss the matter.'' ''We request the opposition to come and sit across the table. We are willing to listen to your grievances and find a solution to it.

You should also be prepared to listen to our side of the matter,'' he said.

''At no point of time we would advice retaliation the instigations and violence fanned by the opposition in Nandigram.

What has happened last night in Nandigram was an act of self-defence,'' he added.

Mr Basu said the Krishi Jami Raksha Committee activists had attacked the CPI (M) refugee camp in Khejuri and a battle-like situation was created.

''We have seen in an electronic channel how the Krishi Jami Bachao Committee shouted slogans. The CPI(M) supporters, lodged in the camp, fought back only towards dawn in self-defence. And now the same people have called for a bandh tomorrow. This is strange,'' he said.

Mr Basu further claimed that Sankar Samanta, Robin Bhuiya and Biswajit Maity who died in the incident were CPI(M) workers.

''Death in any form is tragic and sad. We would request the state government to see if anything could be done for the family of those who died,'' he added.

Mr Basu said the violence has been perpetrated by a section of the people spreading rumours. On January 3, Kalicharanpur Gram Panchayat was holding a meeting to finalise the last stage of declaring a few villages in East Midnapore as ''Nirmal Gram'' and a few officers had gone there to see if the village met those parametres.

''But this was misquoted and misinterpreted and after that violence and vandalism was rampant. 21 villages have been cut off from the rest of the districts in the name of democratic movement,'' he added.

He, however, refused to comment on the statements made by Mr Binoy Konar and CPI (M) MP Lakshman Seth.

UNI