Tata factory siege continues; Bannerjee says 'they are getting into this problem'

The rabble-rousing Indian politician behind the siege has renewed her attacks on the car maker, ahead of today's talks.

MUMBAI // The rabble-rousing Indian politician behind the 12-day siege at the factory of the Tata Group's new Nano has renewed her attacks on the car maker ahead of talks in Kolkata today.
"They have admitted they have done a blunder," said Mamata Banerjee, the chief of the populist Trinamool Congress. "They are getting into this problem on their own."
Trinamool has been campaigning against land acquisitions for the plant since the second half of 2006, accusing the state government of forcibly acquiring highly fertile land from farmers. It is demanding that Tata hand back 160 of the 400 hectares it has taken over from farmers for the plant, and says it will then help Tata buy the equivalent area of less fertile land nearby for the factory.
Ms Banerjee accused the Indian company of using its financial clout to manipulate the media to prevent the truth of the compensation deal from getting out. "Tata gives money to the media, so they are all pleading for Tata. They want to play a dark role," she said. Tata, widely seen as one of the country's more ethical companies, had aroused similar opposition in Orissa, Kerala and Bangladesh, Ms Banerjee said. "We are not going to compromise with Tata because of their money, and we are not going to bow our head to this government. We are not purchasable commodities."
Her comments will temper some of the hope that followed her statement on Wednesday that she thought a solution could be achieved within days, and her acceptance that farmers could, in principle, receive new land in compensation for the land they had lost, rather than have their existing land returned. Nirupam Sen, the West Bengal industry minister, will meet another Trinamool leading figure, Partha Chattopadhay, and possibly Tata representatives today in talks chaired by the West Bengal governor, Gopalkrishna Gandhi, the grandson of Mahatma Gandhi. Mr Gandhi met the two sides separately yesterday for preparatory talks.
Tata pulled its staff from the town of Singur, where its plant is located, on Aug 28 and later announced that it was drawing up a detailed plan to close the plant and produce the Nano elsewhere, while still going ahead with its launch next month. The Tata announcement that it plans to leave caused a backlash against Trinamool, which had drawn much of its support from middle-class Bengalis desperate to break the stranglehold that the Communist Party has had over the state's politics.
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