Nandigram: Maoists warn of fresh stir

;Rajib Chatterjee

KOLKATA, 31 JULY: The Communist Party of India (Maoist) has started mobilising its cadres to launch a fresh movement in Nandigram alleging that “several demands” of local people have not been “fulfilled” by the government.

Taking a dig at the Trinamul Congress, the ultra-left outfit’s Nandigram zonal Committee has alleged that except “capitalising” the people’s movement in Nandigram, the Opposition party has done nothing to force the government to fulfil their demands.

The Maoist cadres have reportedly distributed leaflets in Nandigram in the past couple of days which stated that police officers and CPI-M leaders, “involved in gangrape and police firing in Nandigram on 14 March 2007” have not been punished and criminal cases lodged against farmers have not been withdrawn till date.

Terming the Trinamul Congress as a “B-Team of the CPI-M”, the Maoists urged the people of Nandigram and members of the Bhumi Ucched Protirodh Committee (BUPC) to take up arms again.

The CPI (Maoist) has alleged that Trinamul Congress leaders of Nandigram are “obstructing” people of Nandigram who have been demanding that “CPI-M leaders and police officers” who had “gang raped” women and fired upon people killing several of them on 14 March 2007, be punished.

It has now become clear that the Trinamul Congress chief’s “anti-CPI-M speech” was aimed at getting “electoral benefit” and not to “protect the democracy”, the leaflet ~ issued on 18 July ~ states.

Urging the Trinamul Congress to stop making malicious statements against them, the Maoist outfit has called upon the people of Nandigram to start a fresh movement and create pressure on the state government to withdraw criminal cases from BUPC members.

The outfit, in the leaflet, has admitted that they are “arming the people” to protect their rights. The Statesman has procured a copy of the leaflet.

“The demands of the people of Nandigram are no longer important for the Trinamul Congress. They (the Trinamul leaders) have forgotten the promises that they had made to the people of Nandigram.

Unfortunately, they are now trying to suppress the voice of the people who are fighting to get their demands fulfilled,” the leaflet maintained. The Maoists have also alleged that the Trinamul Congress leaders in Nandigram were “threatening” local people for providing shelter to CPI (Maoist) activists.

The outfit has even accused the Trinamul Congress of “joining hands” with the CPI-M to “wipe-out” the Maoists from the state.

“The Central force was sent to Lalgarh at a time when the people were readying to destroy the CPI-M’s fort at Garbeta and Keshpur.

The Trinamul had sent the force to protect the CPI-M’s fort,” the leaflet  stated.                   The Statesman