Author: Editorial
Publication: The Pioneer
Date: January 10, 2007
CPM shows its poison fangs
The ghastly violence that has left at least
six persons dead at Nandigram in West Bengal's East Midnapore district tells
a grim story of Marxist cadre taking the law into their hands with the explicit
purpose of coercing villagers into submission. For some time now, the people
of Nandigram have been apprehensive of their land being forcibly acquired
by the Left Front Government of West Bengal for a mammoth project planned
by Indonesia's Salem Group. Simmering anger over what was perceived by them
as imminent loss of their livelihood erupted into violent clashes on Saturday
night. What added fuel to the fire was the absolutely unwarranted initiative,
if at all this word can be used in a negative context, of Marxist cadre and
local CPI(M) leaders to convince the villagers, not through dialogue but by
brandishing lethal weapons, to part with their land. The grossness of this
totally unconstitutional and entirely illegal act has been acknowledged by
Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee who on Tuesday conceded that zealous
comrades had arrogated to themselves a responsibility that is vested with
district officials. This is also an abject admission of how the CPI(M) runs
a parallel "administration" in West Bengal, substituting the law
of the land with brute muscle power while the civil administration and the
police watch from a safe distance. Nandigram's night of long knives may be
over, at least for the moment, but the scars will take a long time to heal.
Ironically, many of the protesters who clashed with the Marxist landgrabbers
were, till recently, eager members of the party of have-nots which has suddenly
discovered merit in unabashedly wooing big business at the cost of disinheriting
farmers.
Mr Bhattacharjee cannot wash his hands of the stains left behind by his comrades
who went berserk in Nandigram merely by offering "greater political dialogue"
or promising to look into police lapses that so emboldened the killers that
night. He must, if he wishes to be taken seriously by both potential investors
and the people of the State, ensure that the authority of the state is not
eroded by the unchecked lawlessness of party cadre. Since the West Bengal
Police is answerable to him, let Mr Bhattacharjee demonstrate that he means
business by taking the errant policemen, who cowered, trembling like the cowards
they are, as the violence raged through the night, to task. Or, are we to
believe that the men in khaki who are supposed to enforce law and order are
in reality paid up members of the CPI(M) and, therefore, are unable to even
wag a finger in admonishment whenever the party cadre run amok? In either
case, Mr Bhattacharjee cannot allow the police, not to mention the comrades
involved in the killings, to get away with their crime. Second, the Chief
Minister must realise that industrial development cannot be achieved if there
is a social blowback in the form of dissent and discontent. If he fails to
do so, the huge loss, in terms of social instability and disquiet, will overwhelm
and devour the gains in the form of jobs and employment opportunities. Third,
he must now come up with a comprehensive policy taking into account the total
amount of land required for the various projects and how best to meet the
demand without inviting a backlash. Meanwhile, the Opposition, especially
the Trinamool Congress, would do well to behave in a more responsible manner.
Saturday night's violence was largely on account of belligerent Marxist cadre.
But there were other instigators, too, and the Opposition is aware of this
fact.
