Nandigram victims to hold protest demonstration at the CBI Regional Office on April 8

KOLKATA: Villagers of Nandigram in West Bengal’s East Midnapore district who had lost their relatives in 2007 in police firing and clashes, will assemble at the CBI’s regional office here on April 8 and hold a protest demonstration against the investigating agency’s alleged failure to complete the investigation and punish the guilty police officers responsible for the tragic incident.

The agitation will be organised under the banner of Bhumi Uchhed Pratirodh Committee (a committee to oppose forcible land acquisition and eviction of landowners) which was formed in 2007 immediately after the then Left Front government’s move to acquire huge tract of land at Nandigram for setting up a SEZ.

Altogether 14 persons were killed in police firing and clashes between two groups of people at Nandigram on March 14, 2007. Two days after the tragic incident, the Calcutta High Court had asked the CBI to investigate into the incident. “The high court had issued an order on March 16, 2007 and asked the CBI to hold an inquiry into the brutal incident. But due to inaction of the CBI, the process of investigation and punishing the guilty of Nandigram massacre are still left unfulfilled. CPIM cadres who had posed themselves as policemen also opened fire on the innocent and unarmed villagers of Nandigram. But no action has been initiated against them,” Trinamool Congress MP from Tamluk, Suvendu Adhikari told ET on Tuesday.

“We are being compelled to hold the demonstration at the CBI’s regional office in Kolkata to mount pressure on them and also to draw the attention of the common people towards the Nandigram massacre which took place seven years ago and the offenders are still at large,” Adhikari added.