VIOLENCE IN WEST BENGAL'S NANDIGRAM VILLAGES CONTINUES IN

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KOLKATA 000323

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PHUM ASEC SOCI IN
SUBJECT: VIOLENCE IN WEST BENGAL'S NANDIGRAM VILLAGES CONTINUES IN
RUN-UP TO 2008 LOCAL ELECTIONS

REF: KOLKATA 0088


1. (SBU) Summary: Over the past five days, sporadic violence
has occurred in the Nandigram area of West Bengal's East
Midnapore district. Supporters of both the Trinamool
Congress-backed Bhumi Ucched Pratirodh Committee (BUPC) and
Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPM) have engaged in attacks,
including an attack on opposition leader and Trinamul Congress
Chief Mamata Banerjee's convoy when she visited Nandigram.
Banerjee has called for a strike on October 31 to protest the
alleged attack. The violence is part of a political turf battle
between the CPM and the opposition in the run-up to panchayat
(local village) elections scheduled in 2008. A total of 38
people have died in Nandigram since January 3 and that number is
expected to grow before the elections are held. End Summary.


2. (SBU) The Nandigram area in West Bengal's East Midnapore
district remains a volatile, political flashpoint, following
fresh violence since October 25 between the Trinamool
Congress-backed BUPC and CPM supporters. The BUPC was formed to
oppose the government's plans for establishing a chemical hub in
Nandigram and the organization continues to remain active,
although the GOWB called off its chemical hub plan in the face
of violent protests.


3. (SBU) On October 27, one BUPC supporter was killed and
another injured during an exchange of gunfire between BUPC and
CPM cadres. CPM district committee chief for East Midnapore
Asoke Guria said that the BUPC forced CPM party supporters, who
had been living in camps since January, to leave Nandigram. He
added that the violence would stop if BUPC supporters allowed
the displaced to return to their homes. Local opposition
Trinamool Congress legislator Subhendu Adhikary countered that
around 100 CPM enforcers tried to enter Nandigram and hurled
crude bombs, but that the villagers resisted the attack and
forced the group to retreat. Adhikary claimed that CPM MP
Laxman Seth planned the attack in a bid to reestablish his
influence in the area and to exert his authority.


4. (SBU) On October 28, four suspected CPM workers were killed
in a bomb explosion. The same day, the convoy carrying
opposition leader and Trinamul Congress Chief Mamata Banerjee,
who was on a visit to Nandigram, allegedly came under fire
though it unclear who was responsible. Later, BUPC supporters
set the CPM's zonal committee office in Nandigram on fire. To
prevent movement of the police, BUPC supporters also attacked
the Nandigram police station, prevented the police from leaving,
and blocked the road at Haripur area so that police vehicles
could not pass. A bridge was also damaged and the road was dug
up to cut off communication.


5. (SBU) While difficult to verify conflicting allegations, the
BUPC alleges that the four CPM supporters were killed while they
were making crude bombs. Alternatively, the CPM says BUPC
supporters hurled the bombs at them from a relief camp. Mamata
Banerjee alleges that CPM supporters in Khejuri - where the
ousted CPM supporters live in relief camps -- fired at her car
and that she has informed the GOI's Union Home Ministry about
the incident. The police report they have registered a case
related to the attack on Banerjee, but that it remains unclear
as to who actually fired at Banerjee's car. The CPM called for
a 12-hour bandh (strike) at Khejuri on October 29.


6. (SBU) According to local CPM MP Laxman Seth, at least 1,500
CPM supporters who were forced out of Nandigram live in the
Khejuri relief camps while 1,000 more are staying with
relatives. He claims the BUPC is terrorizing these people in
order to capture "political" land in the area. Seth told Post
that he has asked the GOWB to ensure protection for the people
and that he is still awaiting a response.


7. (SBU) Mamata Banerjee has called for a statewide general
strike on October 31 to protest the recent violence and the
alleged attack on her convoy. In addition, the BUPC demands
that the Nandigram Block I of land be excluded from the purview
of the Haldia Development Authority, a body headed by CPM MP
Seth. The BUPC also wants cases against BUPC activists
withdrawn and punishment for those involved in the March 14
killings. They also want the CPM to stop attacks from Khejuri
and compensation for all of their supporters who have been
killed since January.


KOLKATA 00000323 002 OF 002



8. (SBU) Comment: A total of 38 people have died in Nandigram
since January 3. The current violence appears to be a turf war
between the CPM and the opposition, and is part of the run-up to
panchayat polls scheduled in 2008. Also, with the CPM's ongoing
branch and local committee conferences (which will lead to the
party congress in 2008),this latest Nandigram violence is the
result of a desperate attempt by Seth to capture territory and
prove to his own party that he is still in control. Although
the government announced on October 24 compensatory payments to
families of the 14 villagers killed by police on March 14 in
Nandigram, the gesture has had little effect. Even some CPM
district leaders and workers are unhappy that the government has
failed to restore peace and to punish those policemen
responsible for the March 14 killings. As the elections draw
near, more violence and political agitation can be expected.
JARDINE