Mamata rules out talks with CM on Singur issue

Singur, Feb 10 (UNI) Vowing to break off ''Tata's wall'' and force the company to abandon the small car project, Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee today virtually ruled out talks with West Bangal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee unless land acquisition was stopped.

We shall demolish the wall around the small car project site and the Tatas will have to bow to the people's pressure like they did in Kalinganagar of Orissa,'' she said while addressing a rally at Baratelia on the border of Singur.

The rally was organised as part of the '' Singur Chalo'' programme of the Trinamool Congress spearheading an Opposition movement against taking over farm land for industry in Singur and elsewhere in the state.

However, Ms Banerjee, who had earlier threatened to violate prohibitory orders under section 144 CrPc clamped in the area for quite some time chose to avoid a direct collision with the administration by holding the rally outside the Singur police station area.

''We could have violated the prohibitory orders but we have not gone for it as a gesture on our part. Tatas should also keep in mind that they are not yet through with the project and not for long will they be able to remain in the fort in Singur with the help of police,'' she said.

Senior Congress leader Subrata Mukherjee and top Trinamool leaders were present at the rally.

Asserting that the government must stop acquiring land anywhere in the state, the Trinamool supremo said she would hold talks with Mr Bhattacharjee on the Singur issue only if her demand was met.

We are ready to hold dialogues with the government at any place and any time if forcible land acquisition is stopped. The government is using force to acquire land on the one hand and inviting us for talks on the other,'' she said referring to the Chief Minister's recent letter to leader of the Opposition Partha Chatterjee calling for conciliatory negotiations on the Singur issue.

Mr Bhattacharjee in his previous four letters to Ms Banerjee had made similar attempt but while making it clear that the small car project would be set up in Singur.

Ms Banerjee said she had also categorically said after every letter that talks were not possible as long as land acquisition process was on.

Alleging that the Left Front government was going the fascist way by suppressing the Opposition with the help of gun, she demanded that the Centre sack this government.

She also questioned how could a thousand workers drawn from outside could be engaged in construction works for the Tatas project when the Opposition parties were being denied entry in the area on the ground of prohibitory orders.

Mr Banerjee denied that Trinamool Congress supporters were involved in assaulting mediapersons during the in the day meeting and blamed the CPI(M) cadres for the incident.

Same mediapersons were injured when a group, allegedly Trinamool Congress supporters, assaulted them at the rally.

UNI