A candlelight campaign at Esplanade on Sunday evening in favour of the Tata factory in Singur. Picture by Bishwarup Dutta.

As Mamata Banerjee stood her ground in Singur, a group of young protesters chose the venue of her marathon fast last year to speak up for the Tata small-car project she is campaigning against.

“The Nano plant will be a trophy industry that should help Bengal attract more investment,” said 28-year-old IBM engineer Shawkat Ali, standing on a 10x5-foot podium in front of Metro cinema.

That spot had been Mamata’s last December. She had then fasted for 26 days in protest against land acquisition in Singur for the small-car project.

On Sunday, the stage belonged to Shawkat and his Sector V friends, and they all spoke about how Bengal would be the biggest loser if the Tatas took the project elsewhere. Unlike on other weekends, the engineer had spent Saturday mobilising support for the “cause”.

A vinyl flex had been put up outside the Infinity building in Sector V for people to pledge their support to the Tata project.

Most of those who gathered in front of Metro cinema the next afternoon were those who had responded to Shawkat’s plea and the online campaign started by Jhuma Mukherjee, an executive in a life sciences firm, and one of her colleagues.

With some passers-by joining the protest, the size of the crowd in front of Metro cinema increased to over 250 people.

“We do not have any political leanings. We have floated a forum called Town Hall and this is our first programme. Anybody who is pro-industrialisation can join us. We will continue to campaign for the cause of industrialisation,” said Jhuma, her nervousness showing for a moment as she held the microphone to make her first public speech.

But once she started, there was no holding back.

“Why can’t people realise that young people like us would suffer if the Tata project goes away? I spoke from the heart,” she said later.

Jhuma’s website http://wesupportindustry.silicogene.com//SR, activated last week, drew over 300 messages supporting the Tata project on the very first day.

Members of Town Hall intend to meet chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee and Mamata in the next few days. Jhuma and her team have already drafted a memorandum in support of the Tata project. As dusk set in, they lit candles to express their solidarity.

Around 25 people, including professionals, addressed the rally. A group of lathi-wielding constables looked on. “We cannot afford to miss the bus,” said one of the youths standing near the podium and collecting signatures.

“We need more industries to generate jobs. If a showpiece project like this faces so many hurdles, other investors will not come to Bengal,” said a senior accountant of an infrastructure support company.