Tatas to get land soon: Buddha

KOLKATA: West Bengal chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee confirmed on Monday that his government will hand over land to Tata Motors at Singur in December itself. He said the company will receive the fullest co-operation from the state government in setting up the Singur unit.

Addressing newspersons at the assembly lobby, Mr Bhattacharjee said that he would not mind holding talks with the opposition parties on the issue of industrial growth of West Bengal. “I want help and co-operation from the opposition parties and I don’t want the opposition to spoil the industrial prospects of West Bengal,” the chief minister said.

Meanwhile, Singur issue has queered the Trinamool pitch after BJP president Rajnath Singh rushed to Kolkata and joined Mamata Banerjee, who is on an indefinite hunger strike.

State Congress working president Pradip Bhattacharjee told reporters on Monday that it will not be possible for the Congress to support Trinamool Congress as the latter had not snapped ties with the BJP. “We have categorically made clear our view that it is impossible for the Congress to hobnob with any political party having links with the BJP,” Mr Bhattacharjee said.

Sources in the Trinamool Congress said that Mamata herself had contacted Rajnath Singh over phone and invited him to join her near Metro cinema where the Trinamool Congress leader is on a hunger strike.

Party sources also said that “Mamata is not happy with the role played by the Congress in the state legislature on November 30 when her MLAs had carried out rampage. Mamata had expected the Congress to join the Trinamool Congress MLAs,” a senior Trinamool Congress leader said.

But the Congress had criticised Trinamool Congress for carrying out destruction,” a senior Trinamool Congress leader said. In another development, speaker Hasim Abdul Halim has blocked payment of salaries and allowances of the Trinamool Congress MLAs unless the party pays compensation for destroying costly furniture in the state legislature on November 30.