SC quashes Singur land deal, 'landmark decision' says WB CM

New Delhi [India], Aug 31 (ANI): The Supreme Court on Wednesday cancelled the deal through which the former Left government in West Bengal acquired land in Singur in 2006, thereby handing Tata Motors a big setback. The apex court told the West Bengal Government to hand the land back to the farmers in the next 12 weeks. The ruling added that the farmers do not have to return the compensation they received from the government because they were deprived of their livelihood for a decade. Describing the top court's ruling as a 'landmark decision', West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said, "I am remembering those people who made sacrifices fighting for this. This is a landmark victory after we thought of the new name for state of West Bengal. I am very happy with the decision." "I will call for a strategy meeting tomorrow at 4 p.m. I had dreamt of this verdict for so long, for the people of Singur. Now, I can die in peace. West Bengal is the final industrial destination, keep that in mind," she added. Banerjee, after coming to power, passed the Singur Land Rehabilitation and Development Act, 2011, to take over the land given to the Tata's by the previous government. The Tata Group was given around a thousand acres of land by the state government in 2006 to build a car manufacturing factory, but in the wake of violent protests from the Trinamool Congress (TMC), the project was shelved. Tata Motors moved the Calcutta High Court challenging the law. The acquisition of the land was upheld by a trial court and the law passed by the TMC-led state government was declared unconstitutional on appeal. After that, the dispute moved to the Supreme Court. (ANI)