Police deny CPM cadre involvement

NANDIGRAM/KOLKATA: Unrest has returned to Nandigram. According to sources, the Bhumi Uchched Pratirodh Committee (BUPC) organised a rally on Friday to protest the alleged torture of its supporters, who returned to Khejuri on June 6-7, by CPM cadres. Around 8 am on Friday, BUPC members started marching towards Khejuri via Bhangaberia, the scene of the March 14 bloodbath.When the rally neared the bridge on Talpati canal, they came under fire from the Khejuri side. Instead of retreating, BUPC members dug in and returned fire.
A police party from the Bhangaberia camp rushed to the spot, under a hail of gunfire, to broker peace. Though the CPM cadres backed off, the BUPC members continued to shoot and march forward. Five cops were injured. The policemen finally fired in the air and the attackers dispersed, but not before ransacking a CPM relief camp. Senior police officers in Kolkata denied that the CPM cadres were involved in the attack or that a relief camp was ransacked. What has shocked the police most is that the firing this time was from regular firearms, unlike the earlier incidents when country-made weapons were used.
The injured officer has been admitted to SSKM Hospital in Kolkata. "Prabhat Kumar Sarkar, an inspector of the district intelligence branch, was shot in the head and had to be rushed to Kolkata. Since the firing was from the Sonachura side, we can assume that BUPC members were involved. The relief camp was the initial target and BUPC members crossed the canal and managed to reach the bridge," said IG (law and order) Raj Kanojia.
On why the police did not fire back at the attackers, he said, "Officers have orders to restrain themselves. The BUPC members were well entrenched and firing by the police may have led to casualties among innocent villagers. The police fired 3-4 rounds in the air to bring the situation under control. The firing was from regular weapons. This is a serious incident."
Additional forces have been rushed to the area. East Midnapore SP G A Srinivas, who is camping at the spot, said no arrests had been made. BUPC and CPM members are trading charges. BUPC leader Sheikh Sufian claimed his supporters were on a peaceful march when CPM cadres attacked them, but CPM district secretariat member Ashok Guria refuted this.