BJP, CPM clash over Nandigram in RS

CPI(M), which is in power in the state, hit back at the Opposition, especially BJP, by strongly condemning any attempt by it to destabilise the government.

Seeking to kill two birds with one stone, the Opposition on Thursday sought to put both CPI(M) and the Centre on the mat in the Rajya Sabha on Thursday on the Nandigram issue and demanded that President's Rule should be imposed in West Bengal.

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The CPI(M), which is in power in the state, hit back at the Opposition, especially BJP, by strongly condemning any attempt by it to destabilise an elected government by seeking President's Rule.

Initiating a Short Duration Discussion on the proposal to set up a SEZ in Nandigram and consequent large-scale violence, senior BJP leader Sushma Swaraj said since directives to the state under Article 355 would not work, "President's Rule should be imposed".

Claiming that the Centre's directives have been thrown to the winds, Swaraj, who visited Nandigram thrice, wondered if Home Minister Shivraj Patil's orders will be carried out and asked how the Centre was going the tackle the problem of Maoists.

In a hard-hitting speech, she narrated the sequence of incidents in Nandigram and asked if 14 persons were killed by policemen, who were said to have opened fire in self defence, how come no securitymen were injured.

Amidst shouts of "shame, shame", she alleged that though a large number of women had been raped in Nandigram, the state government had not taken any steps to punish the guilty.

Swaraj demanded a resolution from the Chair condemning the violence in Nandigram which, she said, should be passed unanimously by the House.