Nandigram: Mamata meets Forward Bloc leader

Trinamool Congress leader Mamata Banerjee today created history of sorts by meeting Forward Bloc leader Ashok Ghosh at the headquarters of the Left Front constituent for the first time in the last 30 years of the government's rule in the state.

The outcome of the meeting between the two leaders was that the date for the much awaited all-party meeting to restore peace in Nandigram was finally fixed for May 24. This would avoid a clash with the Politburo meeting in Delhi.

The meeting would be held at Mahajati Sadan, a cultural centre in Kolkata. All issues regarding Nandigram would be discussed with an "open mind", Ghosh said at a joint press conference with Banerjee after the meeting.

Banerjee said she decided to attend the meeting following Ghosh's assurance that all the decisions taken at the meeting would be implemented by the government.

Ghosh claimed that chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee and the Left Front had assured him that all the decisions in the meeting would be implemented. She alleged that the miscreants arrested by CBI had been released by CID after issue of chargesheets against them.

"This is a gross violation of the rules," she claimed.efore the all-party meeting, the Left Front will meet to ratify the decision.