Advani demands invocation of Article 355 in Nandigram

New Delhi, Mar 15 (UNI) Leader of the Opposition L K Advani today expressed shock and outrage over yesterday's 'barbaric violence' unleashed by police and CPI-M cadre at Nandigram and demanded that the government invoke Article 355 to direct the West Bengal Government to take necessary steps to restore normalcy in the area.

Talking to newspersons, the former Deputy Prime Minister said he wanted the Centre to ask the state government to unconditionally withdraw the proposal to set up Special Economic Zone at Nandigram.

"We believe that protests by villagers will not stop unless there is a categorical assurance to this effect", Mr Advani said.

Mr Advani said he had already spoken to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Home Minister Shivraj Patil and expressed his sense of outrage and had sought their intervention to stop violence and restore law and order and constitutional governance.

The PM has assured me that he would ask the Home Minister to take necessary steps, Mr Advani said.

In his seven point charter of demands, Mr Advani urged the Centre to rush para-military forces to Nandigram and neighbouring areas to ensure sense of security among the people who were terrorised by the 'partisan police'.

He said leaders of the NDA had met in the morning on Nandigram issue and decided to ask the government to send an all party delegation to the affected areas to assess the situation as was done in the case of violence in Gujarat and Jammu and Kashmir.

Mr Advani however said the NDA was hopeful that the government would to their demands but if it was not accepted the NDA would send its own delegation to Nandigram. "I will be part of the delegation", he said.

The Leader of Opposition said that the NDA wanted to meet President A P J Abdul Kalam but were told that he would be returning here only on Saturday.

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