Violence rules

Sir — The Trinamul Congress-backed Krishi Jami Raksha Committee started with threats in spreading terror in Singur, and now it has graduated to physical assault (“Land protesters beat Singur engineer senseless”, July 30). After this, can the TMC still claim to be a responsible political party and offer an alternative to the present government in West Bengal? I would like to urge the TMC to rise above petty politics and think about the larger benefit of the state. There is no denying that Singur is witnessing some positive economic changes because of Tata Motors’s decision to set up its small-car factory there. Neither the TMC, nor its affiliate, the KJRC, stands to lose anything if the Tata factory operates in Singur. The sooner this fact dawns on the leaders of the movement, the better it will be for the people of Singur and Bengal.

Yours faithfully,
Ananta Santra, Sreerampore

Sir — It is indeed a disgrace that labourers were forced to leave Singur’s Tata Motors project by the KJRC members, most notably the local TMC leader, Becharam Manna. It is a shame that we still owe our existence to the mercy of the goons of political parties. It is besides the point that Singur has been the breeding ground of controversies engineered by political parties opposing industrialization in the state. Are we as citizens expected to be dumb spectators to the politicians’ power games?

Yours faithfully,
Deeti Sen, Calcutta

Sir — What authority does Becharam Manna have to stop the people of Singur from going to work? The way the KJRC has terrorized the hapless workers of Tata Motors’s small car plant and forced them to leave their jobs and relocate is not acceptable. After being elected to power in the area in the last panchayat polls, the TMC has failed to show even the minimum amount of responsibility towards the people of Singur. What does the party want? Does it want Tata to leave the state? If it does, will the state or the party gain anything from it? Most importantly, will Becharam Manna and his superiors take responsibility for the people losing their livelihoods?

Yours faithfully,
Mithu Sengupta, Calcutta

Sir — What is happening in Singur is political hooliganism at its worst. The inaction of the administration and the police against criminals like Becharam Manna who are hurling bombs, threatening and attacking people, is surprising. The future of the state is at stake, and the ruling party is as much to blame for the mess in Singur as the opposition.

Yours faithfully,
Sreeraj Mitra, Calcutta

Sir — If bombs have really been hurled inside the Tata Motors plant in Singur with the intention of scaring the workers to leave, this is extremely shocking (“Bomb message to Tata workers”, July 29). This to me is terrorism and a clear violation of the constitutional rights of a citizen. If the ruling communists, the opposition leaders and the intellectuals of the state choose to be mute spectators, then we, the citizens, must raise our voice against such acts of violence and vandalism.

Yours faithfully,
Sanjeev Sreevastava, Calcutta

Sir — Can a quasi-political outfit like the KJRC drive me out of my home and force me to leave my job? If Singur is targeted today, who can say that it won’t be Calcutta tomorrow? Can we afford to ignore Singur’s woes and consider ourselves to be immune to the problems afflicting rural Bengal?

Yours faithfully,
Subhojit Goswami, Calcutta

Sir — If the TMC and the KJRC are at fault in Singur, then so is the media for giving so much publicity to the antics of political hoodlums. We have enough trouble in India already in the form of terrorism from across the border. We don’t need home-grown terror to further jeopardize our existence.

Yours faithfully,
Samrat Sen, Calcutta

Sir — As a resident of West Bengal, I am thoroughly disgusted with the way things are going in Singur. It seems that the decision-makers of the opposition parties are hellbent on tarnishing the image of the state to the world. When it is not the TMC politicizing issues, it is the Congress trying to drum up discontent. Who stands to gain from this? Whoever it may be, there is no doubt that the losers are the common people. It appears to me that all the violence and terror tactics are aimed at preventing the people from seeing the big picture of development.

Yours faithfully,
P. Basu, Calcutta

Sir — The media have reported that the KJRC convener and local TMC leader, Becharam Manna, has ordered workers from outside Singur to quit their jobs and leave the area immediately. It is shocking that an elected representative is roaming scot-free even after issuing a diktat like this, attacking the constitutional rights of a citizen. Why is the TMC leader, Mamata Banerjee, silent on this? And what about the intellectuals? Isn’t it time they spoke up against this sort of unlawful decree in the same way that they did after Nandigram?

Yours faithfully,
Arnab Chatterjee, Calcutta

Sir — It is only because the power of the local governing bodies was not checked in time that they have now started challenging the Constitution. The anti-constitutional activities of the KJRC threatens the basis of our democracy. Given a free run, these will devastate our fundamental rights. It is in our own interest to raise our voice against the KJRC diktat.

Yours faithfully,
Rajyosri Banerjee, Calcutta