BY KAUSHIK PRADHAN
Kolkata, Sept. 7: After some last-minute hiccups which could have derailed the whole peace process initiated by West Bengal governor Gopalkrishna Gandhi, the Singur stalemate was finally resolved late on Sunday evening.
West Bengal chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee agreed to part with a considerable volume of land to buy peace with Trinamul Congress president Mamata Banerjee. She agreed to lift the indefinite siege of Singur. It was after a second round of talks between the two leaders, which ended at 10.20 pm, that the governor, standing between them, announced the truce.
"The government has taken the decision to respond to the demands of those farmers who have not received compensation by means of land to be provided to the maximum within the project area and the rest in the adjacent area," Mr Gandhi read out from a brief statement.
Although the statement did not specify the quantum of land which the government had agreed to give back to the Trinamul Congress-led Save Farmland Committee, Ms Banerjee claimed her demand for the return of 400 acres had been accepted by the state government. "I am glad the government has agreed to give 300 acres inside the Tata Motors’ project area and 100 acres outside. The construction work at the vendors’ park will remain suspended," she added. In reply to a query if it was her victory, she responded: "Total victory."
The ancillary units in the vendors’ park are located on 290 acres. In Ms Banerjee’s words, the ancillary units would be shifted onto the land opposite the project area. This had been her demand.
Ms Banerjee made most of these claims after coming out of Raj Bhavan. The governor also announced the formation of a four-member committee, with two members each from the government and the Opposition, to identify the land and ascertain the modalities of giving effect to the agreement.
The Singur crisis created history of sorts in West Bengal politics. Mr Gopalkrishna Gandhi was instrumental in bringing two sworn political adversaries, Mr Bhattacharjee and Ms Banerjee, to the negotiating table. This was, incidentally, the first meeting between the two since Mr Bhattacharjee took over from Jyoti Basu as chief minister in late 2000.
As per schedule, Mr Bhattacharjee entered Raj Bhavan at 11 am to hold a one-to-one discussion with the governor. The chief minister left Raj Bhavan at 12.05 pm, and Leader of the Opposition Partha Chatterjee came in to meet Mr Gandhi. Mr Chatterjee left Raj Bhavan with the governor’s letter addressed to Ms Banerjee, in which he urged the Trinamul Congress president to come for a meeting with him to resolve the impasse.
In Singur, celebrations began as soon as Ms Banerjee declared in Kolkata that it was her "total victory". She had been on a dharna at Singur for the past fortnight, and the agitation had been going on for two years.
Mr Gopalkrishna Gandhi, who has been chairing the talks since Friday, said while reading from the text of the joint statement that the state government and those agitating on behalf of the farmers would cooperate with each other for the benefit of industry, agriculture and ancillaries.
The governor was flanked by Mr Bhattacharjee, Ms Banerjee, state commerce and industry minister Nirupam Sen and Trinamul leaders Partha Chatterjee and Kalyan Banerjee.
