Left Front alleges Trinamool-Maoist nexus in West Bengal

The Left Front along with  the TDP and the JD(S) today submitted a memorandum to home minister P Chidambaram, alleging existence of a nexus between the Maoists and the Trinamool Congress in West Bengal.

"We met the home minister with a delegation of the Left Front and TDP and JD(S) to draw his attention to the fact that there is incontrovertible evidence of links between the Trinamool Congress and the Maoists," CPI(M) leader Sitaram Yechury told reporters after submitting a memorandum to Chidambaram.

Yechury said, "So far whenever we raised the issue, we were told that it was the CPI(M) or Left Front's charge against Trinamool Congress. Now, in this memorandum, we have given him evidence as we have collected it from one of their (TMC) own members of Lok Sabha, who has published a book detailing various meetings that have taken place before the Nandigram incident in West Bengal."

A recently released book written by Kabir Suman, a Trinamool MP, describes how the anti-land movement in Nandigram has succeeded because of a close coordination between the Trinamool and Maoists.

Referring to the Nandigram agitation, Yechury said, "Since then onwards this collaboration (TMC-Maoists) is continuing...and then a statement by a Maoist leader himself who has given graphic details of how they have not only worked together but also that they would work in future together.

Describing this nexus as a threat to India's internal security, the CPI(M) MP said, "We have a prime minister of the country who has repeatedly said that the gravest threat to India's security is the Maoist violence and now you have members of his cabinet who are actively in collaboration with the Maoist and are, therefore, undermining India's internal security."

He said this was a contradiction that cannot be accepted.

On Chidambaram's response, he said, "The home minister assured us that this is a very serious matter and that he will look into it impartially. We hope that the government takes cognisance of it."

However, Yechury also said that it is not an intra-party issue between TMC and CPI(M) or LF or secular opposition parties.It is an issue concerning the internal security of our country. That is why we have come here to tell the home minister to look into it seriously and he assured us that he will take it seriously."

AIADMK, RSP and Forward Block representatives were conspicuous by their absence during the meeting of the Left Front leaders with Chidambaram. Only CPI, JD(S) and TDP members were present in the delegation.

Yechury said, "All non-Congress and non-BJP secular parties are with us. Some could not come. TDP and JD(S) members are present here. Forward Block and RSP are with us but they could not reach here but they have signed the memorandum."

He said the memorandum has been submitted with annexures.