This is the mother of all ironies. A day after West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee offered land to Tata, the multinational has asked her to pay them ₹154 crores as "compensation" for the land they had bought in Singur from the earlier Left Front government. Interestingly, unnamed sources told The Indian Express that the state government viewed this as a "positive step" in the "right direction".
In fact, sources told the newspaper that the company was ready to "waive off" eight times that amount, which it had lost during it's subsequent shift to Gujarat where it built the Nano factory instead.
The story of Banerjee and Tata Motors has grown curiouser and curiouser. Five years ago, Banerjee rose to power with a historic win against the Left government, which had ruled West Bengal for 34 years. This was believed to be largely because of her campaign against the Tata Nano plant in Singur. Last month, a Supreme Court judgment finally cancelled the Tata Motors deal, asking the Bengal government to return the land it had taken from farmers and local residents.
Then on Wednesday, she offered to give an alternative plot of land to Tata Motors, which her party colleagues called "gracious".
Dear @MamataOfficial My 1st 'public tweet' to u. Learnt from u today how to b gracious in victory.No malice, no vindictiveness #SingurDiwas
— Derek O'Brien (@quizderek) September 14, 2016
On Thursday, Banerjee's government signed an agreement with Tata Metaliks Limited, a subsidiary of Tata Steel, to train 1,200 people each year in a skill development centre in West Midnapore. This is the same area where Banerjee has offered land to Tata.
The West Bengal government's response to Tata's demand for compensation is awaited, but it is likely that Banerjee may offer 'business-friendly' measures in place of cash, a state government official told Express.
Where will this relationship go from here?