West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today described as "landmark victory" the Supreme Court judgement on Singur land acquisition by the erstwhile Left Front government for the Nano car plant even as Tata Motors said it would study the judgement before commenting on it.
An elated Banerjee told reporters at the state secretariat that the "The Supreme Court judgement on Singur is a landmark victory. We have waited 10 years for this judgement. I can die peacefully, I am so happy (with the verdict.)"
Banerjee, who steered political opposition against the land acquisition process forcing the Tatas to abandon the project in 2008, said her government would shortly work out on a mechanism to return land to the farmers as directed by the court.
"We will hold strategy meeting tomorrow as to how to implement SC verdict", she said.
The division bench of justices Arun Mishra and V Gopala Gowda of the apex court ruled that the land acquisition process in Singur was faulty and not for public purpose.
It directed that land be returned to the farmers within 12 weeks.
Banerjee said, "From the beginning, we had been telling that the method of the acquisition was unethical and land was taken away forcibly from the farmers."
She said she had staged a hunger strike in the city which lasted for 26 days to protest against the acquisition process.
She said that the genesis of her party Trinamool Congress' slogan 'Maa-Maati-Manush' (mother-land-people) was from the Singur movement, she said adding that "It was not only a blunder but historical suicide by the LF government".
Tata Motors said it would study the Supreme Court judgement on Singur in detail before commenting on it.
"This case in which the judgement was delivered today related to the acquisition of land by the state government (read West Bengal government) before it was leased to Tata Motors," the company said in a statement.
It further said "Our case relating to the Singur Act of 2011 is yet to be heard by Supreme Court. We will study today's judgement in detail before commenting further on the same.
Meanwhile, CPI-M ruled out an apology for "forcible"
land acquisition at Singur and said the land was acquired as per the Land Acquisition Act of 1894.
CPI-M state secretary Surjya Kanta Mishra said "When the TMC government came to power in 2011 we had said that you have got the people's mandate and if you want to return the land there is no problem. But it should be returned by following the constitutional norms and laws.
"We were never opposed to returning the land ... Now the question will be how the land will be returned and in what condition. What will happen to those who had taken the compensation and returned the land ?" Mishra said.
Ruling Trinamool Congress hailed the apex court verdict and said it is "a victory of the masses".
"Those who had used brute force to acquire land should tender an apology to the masses and hang their head in shame ... It is victory for farmers, victory for truth and victory for Maa-Maati-Manush," TMC secretary general Partha Chatterjee said.
"We will celebrate Singur Divas throughout the state on September 2," he told reporters.
Welcoming the verdict, Congress said Singur farmers got justice.
"We welcome the verdict on land acquisition by Supreme Court. I was personally with TMC during the anti-land acquisition movement. I feel the farmers of Singur today got justice," Leader of Opposition Abdul Mannan, a veteran Congress leader said.
West Bengal BJP president Dilip Ghosh hailed the apex court verdict.
Singur Trinamool Congress MLA Rabindranath Bhattacharjee said it is a recognition of farmers' movement under leadership of Mamata Banerjee.
There was jubilation among the Singur farmers, whose
land was acquired for the car factory. The people, who were waiting for the verdict since the morning, erupted in joy as soon as the news flashed on their TV screens.
Rallies were taken out with Banerjee's posters. Slogans like 'Mamata Banerjee zindabad', 'Mamata Banerjee tomay amra bhulchi na, bhulbo na (we will never forget you)' rent the air.
The villagers were happy with the apex court's order that compensation given to them would not have to be paid back and those who had not taken the compensation would now get it at the same rate.
Asked what would they do after getting their land back, the farmers said the decision would be taken only after seeing its condition as construction activities had been carried out and there was no cultivation on the vacant portions for 10 years.
