MUSLIMS MOST AFFECTED IN NANDIGRAM

In areas where the Government proposed land acquisition for SEZ, almost 65 per cent of the population is Muslim, largely a middle peasantry and sharecroppers. They are most dependent on land for their livelihood. In the core area of proposed SEZ, a large number of Muslims owned small shops and engaged in tailoring and Zari work. Muslims make up a significant section of the villages in Nandigram’s Block 1 – the core of the agitation – which includes Muhammadpur, Kendamarichar, Jalpai, Samsabad, Daudpur, Kalicharanpur, Garchakrebaria and Satengabad. Local people find no difference between BJP and the so-called progressive Marxists.