Trinamool could script Nandigram-II

There could more controversy in Nandigram over land. But this time the party in the firing line won’t be CPI(M), it will be Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamool.

Three years ago, Trinamool had led an agitation against land grab in Nandigram. The stir had given the party and its chief a new lease of life. In 2010, acquiring land could prove difficult for the Union ministry of shipping, where Trinamool’s Mukul Roy is a minister. The ministry wants to implement a vital de-siltation project for Haldia Port.

The issue in question is the same 2,500 acres of land. In 2007, the land was meant to host a chemical hub. Today, the ministry is thinking of using it to dump silt.

Recently, when the ministry requested the Bengal government to acquire the 2,500 acres for the project, it refused, saying according to its policy, no land will be acquired for any industrial project in Nandigram.

Sources in CPI(M) said if  the ministry tries to acquire the land on its own, the party will highlight the issue in a big way. “It was easy to mislead farmers then. This time, we want to see how they tell farmers to hand over land. We will not remain silent,” a senior Left Front leader said.