Return land forcibly acquired from farmers: Mamata

Accusing the West Bengal government of creating a conflict between agriculture and industry, Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee asked authorities on Thursday to return land that was 'forcibly' acquired from farmers in Singur for the Tata Mators' project.

"It is my challenge to return to farmers their land forcibly acquired by the government for the Tata Motors' small car project in Singur," Banerjee told a rally at West Bengal's Barasat, North 24 Parganas.

Lashing out at the central government for remaining 'silent' on the acquisition of farm land at Singur, she said, "I fail to understand why the UPA is indifferent to the situation. It may because it takes outside support of the CPI-M

to cling to power at the Centre."

Banerjee, who has welcomed the Calcutta high court order quashing prohibitory orders in Singur, said, "If the chief minister has minimum respect for democracy, he should have stepped down by now.

"After remaining inactive on industrialisation for the last 30 years, the Left Front has started grabbing the land of poor peasants in the name of industry at Singur, Nandigram and Khejuri," she alleged.

Banerjee urged the peasantry to resist the acquisition of land by forming 'save farm land committees' wherever agricultural land was sought to be taken away for industry.