West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Friday said a BJP government in the state would bring the Tata Group back to Bengal, while accusing both the Left Front and the TMC of failing to deliver meaningful industrial growth.
Addressing a press conference, Adhikari said his government would prioritise investment and job creation without repeating the mistakes that fuelled the Singur and Nandigram agitations.
"We will bring back the Tatas in Bengal," the chief minister asserted, referring to the Tata Group’s Nano car project in Singur that shifted to Gujarat in 2008 after a prolonged land acquisition row.
Stepping up his attack on the opposition TMC, Adhikari alleged that the Mamata Banerjee-led government had spent years making tall claims about industrial revival without producing results.
"We don't want to indulge in lies and organise photo sessions like the previous government did to attract industries," he said.
On land acquisition, Adhikari said the state government was working on a policy framework that would balance industrial growth with farmers’ rights.
"The government is working on its land acquisition policy. We are against forcible land acquisition, like what happened in Singur and Nandigram during the erstwhile Left Front regime. At the same time, we are also against the TMC's policy of doing nothing while only holding photo sessions and spreading lies about bringing industries," he said.
The chief minister said the BJP government would adopt a balanced approach to industrialisation, with a focus on public consent and sustainable development.
The Tata Motors Singur episode remains a defining chapter in Bengal’s political history, with protests over land acquisition helping propel Mamata Banerjee and the TMC to power in 2011, ending the Left Front’s 34-year rule.
(With inputs from PTI)