'Don't Move An Inch...': Mamata Asks Ministers To Stage Protest Outside Amartya Sen's House

Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday asked state ministers to begin a sit-in demonstration outside Nobel laureate Amartya Sen's house in Santiniketan to protest against the Visva-Bharati University's eviction order, an official said. During a cabinet meeting, Banerjee asked MSME Minister Chandranath Sinha, the local MLA, to lead the protest, which will be joined by Education Minister Bratya Basu and Urban Development Minister Firhad Hakim.

She asked them not to move from the spot even if the central varsity sends bulldozers to take possession of the land.

Bauls and other folk artists from the district must be involved in the demonstration, and various cultural programs should be organised there, she told the ministers, according to the official.

Singer Kabir Suman and painter Subhaprasanna will also join the programme on May 6 and 7, the official said, quoting her.

"The CM advised them not to move an inch even if Visva-Bharati sends bulldozers to take possession," he said.

Banerjee had last week said that she would start a sit-in demonstration in Santiniketan over the issue.

Visva-Bharati had sent an eviction notice to Sen on April 19, asking him to vacate 13 decimals of the 1.38 acres land of his residence within May 6.

The university has been claiming that Sen is in possession of 1.38 acres of land on the Santiniketan campus, which is in excess of his legal entitlement of 1.25 acres. The economist has earlier asserted that most of the land he is holding in the Santiniketan campus was purchased from the market by his father while some other plots were taken on lease.

Set up in 1921 by Rabindranath Tagore, Visva-Bharati is West Bengal's only central university, and the prime minister is its chancellor.

Banerjee had handed over land-related documents to Sen during a visit to his residence in January when he was at Santiniketan.

Meanwhile, the state cabinet gave its nod to build a 'Skill Development City' on 77.33 acres of land at Rajarhat.

State-of-the-art training centers will be developed under the initiative by private organisations, the official said.

At the meeting, the chief minister expressed her displeasure over the "systematic delay" in new appointments even after cabinet approval, he said.

The appointments should be completed as quickly as possible, Banerjee said, suggesting the formation of an expert committee to make the Public Service Commission more active.