Respected Rashtrapatiji,

We Members of Parliament belonging to the National Democratic Alliance hereby implore you to renew your kind attention to the horrific situation prevailing in and around Nandigram in West Bengal’s East Medinipur district. As you are aware, the State police in cahoots with armed cadre of the State’s ruling party unleashed a reign of terror on hapless villagers on March 14, 2007.

In the indiscriminate firing by the police and party cadre, the death of 14 persons and serious injuries to 35 have been confirmed by officials. At least 50 others are recuperating at various hospitals with different degrees of injury. The fact that while police have admitted to firing only 20 rounds, the number of dead and those injured by bullets far exceeds that figure is conclusive proof of the active participation of the cadre of the State’s ruling party in conducting this murderous campaign.

GROUND REALITIES: Rashtrapatiji, a delegation of NDA Parliamentarians led by the Leader of the Opposition Shri LK Advani visited the affected villages on Saturday March 17. They returned traumatized by what they saw and heard. At Sonachura, one of the most affected villages, a crowd of around 10,000 gathered to relate their woes to this delegation. One villager wept bitterly while narrating how a police bullet pierced his brother’s body. While the injured man was being carried back to the village by his family policemen forcibly snatched him away. He has not been traced yet anywhere in the area and even a thorough search of local hospitals proved futile.

The delegation was told by people in various villages that on the fateful day, congregations had been organized on the fields where Hindus installed idols of Lord Gauranga and Muslims read passages from the Quran to pray for the safety of their lands, which they feared would be forcibly acquired by the State Government for setting up an SEZ. Villagers said the police and CPI(M) cadre attacked them at these prayer meetings. It was unanimously alleged that the police and party cadre fired on fleeing villagers, including women and children, with the intent to kill. That all the dead and injured received gunshots above the waist testifies to the murderous intentions of the attackers.

The delegation also visited the Nandigram Grameen Hospital and the Tamluk Government Hospital where it met a large number of injured persons. The team was astonished to learn that, in complete violation of the police blue book, no provision was made for ambulances or the fire brigade. The injured were ferried to hospitals on bicycles, cycle-rickshaws and even shoulders of other people, resulting in long delays between injury being sustained and the start of medical treatment.

RAPIST POLICEMEN: Even more shocking were allegations of rape by uniformed police personnel. At one village, an elderly lady alleged that policemen brutally raped two young women, before her eyes. At another place, the delegation was informed that uniformed policemen chased a woman who ran into a cowshed for shelter. But the frightened woman was eventually located and raped inside it. Another woman who had been injured in the violence was allegedly raped even while she was unconscious. Since no FIR was registered, the hospital did not conduct a medical examination. When a complaint was finally registered and medical examination ordered, 48 hours had passed making it difficult to establish this heinous crime perpetrated by the supposed guardians of the law.

OUR APPEAL: Rashtrapatiji, you are aware of the current political realities that have effectively curtailed the Government of India’s willingness to step in and restore the rule of law in a State run by a major ally of the ruling UPA. It is a tragedy that while the State’s Governor Shri Gopal Krishna Gandhi responded to his conscience and publicly expressed his anguish at the bloodshed and you too, Sir, obliquely critiqued forcible land acquisition, and the Calcutta High Court ordered a CBI inquiry, the Parliament of India was prevented from discussing one of the worst instances of state terror since Jalianwala Bagh.

Sir, in view of the terror that still prevails in Nandigram with hundreds missing from their homes, and the morbid fear of men in uniform that has gripped villagers, we appeal to you to press upon your Government to invoke the relevant clauses of Article 355 of the Constitution and:

1.Direct the Government of West Bengal to immediately stop the spiral of violence in the area, especially by removing marauding bands of ruling party cadre from the disturbed villages.

2.Take all effective administrative steps to restore a sense of security and confidence among the people.

3. Order the withdrawal of the State police from the affected region and replace it with Central para-military forces.

4. Ask the State Government to withdraw the notification for acquisition of land and categorically assure the people that the no land will be acquired from farmers in this area.

5. Direct the West Bengal Government to establish a special thana in Nandigram with the specific purpose of registering FIRs and noting complaints about police and CPM cadre atrocities, charges of rape, reports about missing persons and other such grievances. This special police post must be instructed to register all complaints without asking complainants to procure written permission from the CPM local committee, which shockingly, is the norm in many parts of West Bengal.

6. Ensure disbursement of adequate compensation to the families of the dead and injured.

Rashtrapatiji, the entire country admires your empathy with ordinary, voiceless people. They in turn look to you as a source of inspiration and succour. The people of Nandigram are waiting for your reassurance, your healing touch, to overcome the trauma of violence to which they have been subjected. We appeal to you to spare a few hours at your earliest convenience to visit the affected villages and comfort the terrorized people there. It will bring a bit of cheer to their lives and restore their faith in a system that has been so unfair to them. We are confident you will consider this appeal favourably.

With kind regards,

Yours faithfully,