Mamata threatens to put her life at stake

Singur, Apr 20 (UNI) Warning that the small car issue would spell a disaster for West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee today said she would put her life at stake until land was returned to farmers in Singur.

''I pledge to put my life at stake to continue the struggle. I shall force the Government to give back the Singur land to farmers,'' she said at a rally, organised by Krishi Jami Raksha Committee.

Reaffirming that nowhere in the state she would allow the Government to acquire agricultural land, the teisty Trinamool leader said the movement in Singur inspired the Nandigram people and it would be all pervading.

''Indira Gandhi had to go because of the people's displeasure over emergency, Rajiv Gandhi had to pay dividends for the Bofors scandal while the people did not accept demolition of Babri mosque and what happened in Gujarat,'' she said.

''The people in West Bengal are not also taking stet kindly the way land is being forcibly acquired and the boundary wall being constructed around the small car site. But the Chief Minister has failed to read their mind, '' Ms Banerjee said.

The rally, attended by a number of peasant women, was organised 5 km off the site for the small car project.

West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation (WBIDC) officials said work for construction of a sewerage line in the proposed site continued during the day with the participation of 2,000 local people.

However, alleging that the Left Front Government was out to make the villagers ''pauper'', Ms Banerjee said method of industrialisation being implemented in the state was wrong.

''We are not against industrialisation. But industry must not be set up on agricultural land, '' she said.

The Trinamool leader alleged that the Government was giving subsidies to industrialists while the farmers were being deprived of any succour.

Leader of the Opposition Partha Chatterjee and other Trinamool Congress functionaries also addressed the rally.

UNI