By IANS
Kolkata : West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharya Wednesday justified his virtual endorsement of the armed capture of Nandigram by “our men”.
A defiant chief minister said: “I stick to what I have said. They (Bhumi Ucched Pratirodh Committee supporters) have been paid back in their own coin.
“Some people are saying that CPI-M workers had started the violence. But they forget that it was the Trinamul Congress-led BUPC that started it all by joining hands with the Maoists and driving our men out of the district. I repeat what I have said yesterday. They have been paid back in their own coin,” he said.
Asked whether by saying “our men”, he meant he was the chief minister of the CPI-M and not of the state, Bhattacharya said: “As I have taken the oath as a chief minister, I am aware of my constitutional duties and my responsibility towards the people. But I cannot be above the party.”
He also made light of the protest by leftwing intellectuals, saying: “Things change rapidly in this world. They will come back to our fold.”
He went on: “I appeal for peace in Nandigram. There should not be any violence. I urge the residents living in the area to maintain peace. Cutting across party lines, our main objective is to instil confidence building measure in the area.”
Speaking on the violence that erupted in Nandigram since last week, Bhattacharya said no untoward incident would have taken place if the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) had reached the area earlier.
Bhattacharya said the government had information about the presence of Maoist guerrillas in Nandigram who came from Jharkhand under the leadership of Ranjit Pal. They have given arms training to villagers in the district, he said.
“I repeatedly asked Trinamul leaders to dissociate Naxalites from their movement. The Maoists took an active part in Nandigram violence in the last two months,” he said.