TMC, BJP lock horns on 16th anniversary of Nandigram police firing

TMC and BJP locked horns on Tuesday as both parties blamed each other for claiming the legacy of the antiland acquisition movement at Nandigram on its 16th anniversaryThe BJP led by the Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari organised rallies in Nandigram area of Purba Medinipur district to commemorate the day which saw 14 antiland acquisition protestors killed in police firing in 2007The Nandigram movement was not a movement of any particular party but of the locals It is a heroic tale of resilience and struggle of the poor people of Nandigram who fought against the then mighty Left Front But unfortunately one political party derived benefits from this peoples movement he said in an oblique reference to TMC while offering floral tributes at Gokulnagar to those who died in the police action on that fateful dayAdhikari the Nandigram lawmaker who had defected from TMC to the saffron camp ahead of the 2021 assembly polls took a dig at the Mamata Banerjee government for promoting IPS officers who were responsible for the incident despite being what he called the biggest beneficiary of the political movementI come here every year since 2008 to pay tribute to the sacrifices made by the people of Nandigram Ironically those who have given promotions to police officers responsible for Nandigram massacre are now celebrating Nandigram Diwas he saidAlso Read Delhi 2 held for duping people on pretext of redeeming credit card pointsSenior TMC leader and minister Chandrima Bhattacharya visited Nandigram Tuesday morning paid floral tributes to the martyrs and met their familiesTMC observes March 14 as Nandigram Diwas since it came to power in West Bengal in 2011 to pay its respect to the 14 who were killed in the police firing during the antiland acquisition stir in the area in 2007She hit back at Adhikaris innuendo saying We dont need lessons on Nandigram or the movement from traitors The Nandigram movement would not have happened had Mamata Banerjee not been there So those trying to appropriate the legacy of Nandigram are insulting the peoples movement she saidBhattacharya said the BJP leader and his family were the biggest beneficiary of the movement which was led by Banerjee the TMC supremoWest Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee tweeted March 14 marks a black day in Bengals history It is a grim reminder of the barbaric attacks on hapless farmers of Bengal of the 14 martyrs of Nandigram and the countless villagers who were subjected to statesponsored violenceShe claimed that West Bengal is among the top agricultural producers in the country and empowered the countrys farmers16 years later Bengal has emerged as a leading agricultural state that empowers its farmers and enables them to lead dignified lives Nandigram Diwas is a bold testament to our indomitable fighting spirit and unrelenting zeal to secure every resident of the state she tweetedAs the then opposition leader Banerjee had joined and led the movements against the erstwhile Left Front governments acquisition of arable land in Nandigram and Singur for industrialisation Adhikari was then her trusted lieutenant in NandigramHer party TMC reaped rich dividends from the agitations by winning 50 per cent of the panchayat seats in 2008 bagging 19 Lok Sabha seats in 2009 and ending the 34yearlong Left Front rule in the state in 2011TMC returned to power for the third successive term in 2021 notwithstanding a highpitched campaign by the BJP Banerjee however lost to Adhikari inNandigram She was later elected from her home seat of Bhabanipur with a record margin in a bypoll held later that yearThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever