Vedic row: Mamata decides to go on the offensive

KOLKATA, Sept 5(Agencies): Scotching speculation that Trinamool Congress is silent on irregularities in land acquisition in Vedic Village, party chairperson Mamata Banerjee on Friday announced her decision to go on the offensive against the state government on the issue.

She would also launch an agitation against the government for the steep rise in prices of essential commodities, particularly potato.

Mamata would lead a protest rally at Shikarpur ground near Vedic Village on September 8, demanding compensation to farmers from whom land had been acquired forcibly for Vedic Village.

"Our agitation is against oppression, for justice.

Many people have lost their land, they have not even got any compensation." Claiming that CPM is staging a "drama" by pretending to be innocent, she said seizure of arms from the Vedic Village precincts proved that goons patronized by the ruling CPM had accumulated a lot of arms and would strengthen her demand for recovery of illegal arms all over the state.

Even after the Vedic Village incident, these goons were visiting the area at night and threatening villagers.

"The investigating officer into the incident has been suddenly changed, it shows there is something wrong somewhere." Denying the involvement of Trinamool MLA from Bhangar, Arabul Islam, in land acquisition at Vedic Village, Mamata said: "Arabul has been around in the political scene for only about three years, while the process of setting up the Vedic Village had started much earlier." Accusing CPM leaders of forcibly acquiring land belonging to members of minority communities, Scheduled Castes and Tribes in the Rajarhat area for quite some time, she said paddy fields had been set on fire to make them look barren.

"All these happened before 2006.

Nobody had come to us at that time and so we could not protest." Announcing the programme to launch an agitation against price rise from September 6, the Trinamool chief said the situation had gone out of control.

Potato is selling for Rs 22 a kg, prices of pulses and sugar have also increased.

She feared in the ensuing festive season people would not get essentials like potato and sugar.

Since the state governments were now empowered to enforce the Essential Commodities Act and they also controlled the public distribution system, the West Bengal government must shoulder the responsibility of controlling prices.

The state government also had the power to prevent hoarding, but its promise to sell potato at Rs 13 a kg had failed.

"As long as the present government is there in the state, it must take responsibility and act," said the Trinamool Congress chairperson.