[Onthebarricades] Police massacre protesting farmers in Nandigram

[Andy]

www.hindustantimes.com ( March,14,2007 8pmIST) 
Six killed, 15 injured in Nandigram police firing 
Sujit Nath 
Nandigram (West Bengal), March 14, 2007 
------------------------------------------ 
March,14,2007 
PRESS STATEMENT 
The brutal police firing on the farmers of 
Nandigram who were opposing the forcible acquisition 
of their lands for SEZs once again demostrates the 
darkest face of Indian democracy.According to the 
unoffical sources appearing on various websites, more 
than 20 people including women have died and around 
200 injured. 
It is the greatest misfortune of the country that 
on the one hand the political corruption has reached 
such an alarming proportion that even the Supreme 
Court has recently expressed deep anguish, while on 
the other poor farmers' small lands are being 
acquired in the name of globalisation and 
privatisation.Perhaps ours is the only democracy in 
the world which possesses such an enormous inequitable 
distribution of wealth that while the government is 
boasting of rapid economic growth, but the farmers 
committing suicide are the daily news. 
Shameful as it may be, India claims to be the 
part of American sponsored so-called global war 
against terrorism, but it is itself resorting to all 
sorts of repressive and terrorist measures to stifle 
the freedom of its own masses. A time has now come 
when each section of the society must stand up against 
these state brutalities and show a high degree of 
determination to safeguard democratic values and 
freedom of the people. 

--------------------------------------------- 
Dr. Mustafa Kamal Sherwani 
Former President, All India Muslim Forum 
3, Sherwani Nagar, Sitapur Road, Lucknow, India 
Presently, Dean, Faculty of Law and Shariah 
Zanzibar University, Tanzania 
Email: sherwanimk at yahoo.com 
Mobile: + 255-777-420360 

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Six killed, 15 injured in Nandigram police firing 
Sujit Nath 
Nandigram (West Bengal), March 14, 2007 

At least six people were killed while 15 others were 
seriously injured after a large contingent of police 
entered Nandigram in east Midnapore district and 
opened fire and clashed with local people on Wednesday 
morning. Unconfirmed reports put the death toll to 
more than 10. 

The Trinamool Congress has called for a 12-hour Bangla 
bandh on Friday. 

Eye witnesses said the trouble started when the police 
contingent started entering the controversial area, 
which had been a focal point of controversy for the 
past few months over villagers' resistance to build in 
an SEZ there, from the Bhangabera side. 

According to eye-witnesses, the police fiercely 
combated all attempts from the villagers who were 
trying to prevent them. There was a procession of 
women which came in between the cross fire and many 
fell dead. 

At about 8 am, more than 2,000 policemen armed with 
AK-47 and other sophisticated weapons entered 
Sonachura village through Khejuri. They first fired in 
the air but that did not deter the protestors. 

Then the firing started resulting in the deaths. A 
section of villagers were armed and they retaliated 
and injured several policemen. 

Following the incident, the opposition members staged 
a walk out and called for state wide protests. Even 
non-CPI(M) partners of the Left Front criticized the 
police action. 

Email author: sujit.nath at hindustantimes.com 
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