Mamata begins 'fast until death'

Kolkata: Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee began an indefinite hunger strike on Monday protesting against Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee’s orders to acquire Singur farmer’s land for Tata’s car plant. BJP President Rajnath Singh shared the stage with Banerjee, to express solidarity with her.

Interestingly, Bengal has never been on BJP’s top priority though the state has been ruled over by the Left for more than two decades.

Now, BJP president Rajnath Singh who won a fresh three-year term recently has decided to raise the party’s stakes in Bengal by doing his best to show Mamata is still important for BJP, notwithstanding her growing proximity with the Congress.

Keen to show that he is for farmers even in the Marxist-ruled West Bengal, Rajnath along with top party leaders from West Bengal got himself arrested on Durgapur Expressway while their way to Singur on Monday.

Mamata begins fast until death

Mamata Banerjee, who has been spearheading an opposition movement on the Singur issue, said she would not move from the venue and continue to 'fast until death' unless demands are met and the government takes back the decision acquiring the fertile land.

Before beginning the hunger strike programme, the Trinamool leader made a scathing attack on the Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee government alleging that it was 'headlong corrupt'.

Her decision to shift to hunger strike from a belligerent movement came two days after violence erupted at Singur in which a section of Naxalite and SUCI (Socialist Unity Centre of India) supporters fought pitched battles with police campaigning for the cause of the farmers.

Despite the growing protest, Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee asserted that the decision regarding Tatas' car project was irreversible and the Government would go ahead with its industrialisation move.

He assured that the project would usher employment opportunities in the area and change the local economy to benefit of all sections of people.

The Trinamool didi had said Bhattacharjee was sticking to his 'ego' by going ahead with the project on agricultural land despite the threat to livelihood of thousands of farmers.

Presence of Rajnath Singh with Banerjee, gave a twist to the chain of events on the Singur issue as the Congress declared that it would not remain with the Trinamool in the movement against acquisition of agricultural land as long as BJP was there.

"We will not be with the Trinamool on this issue if the BJP gets along. We will carry out a separate movement on our own. We cannot have trucks with the BJP since it is a 'communal force' and our main enemy at the national level," Pradesh Congress Working President Pradip Bhattacharjee said.

Meanwhile Rajnath’s arrest had its echo in Parliament where BJP members disrupted proceedings. BJP’s deputy leader in Lok Sabha VK Malhotra accused the Left administration of being 'intolerant' of any democratic protest.

Ironically, Mamata had ditched the BJP only last month to join hands with the Congress in the recent by-polls in the state. The Trinamool and Congress came together after several years on the Singur issue.

Rajnath’s coming out in support of Mamata shows his belief that BJP should not give up on Mamata.