Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee today assured a delegation of mediapersons that his government would take steps to prevent attacks on the Press in trouble-torn Nandigram.

Talking to a delegation from the Press Club, Kolkata, the chief minister said he had asked the East Midnapore district administration to take steps in preventing attacks on the media. A number of journalists had come under attack, mostly by CPI(M) cadres, while covering the violence in Nandigram. In many cases, they were prevented from proceeding towards the trouble-torn area.

"I can tell you, that it will not happen again," he told the eight-member delegation, led by club president Kamal Bhattacharya. When told that the press was prevented from discharging their duties at various places in Nandigram by CPI(M) cadres, Battacharjee said such acts were condemnable and assured that the matter would be taken up at the party s zonal committee level. On recent incidents of area domination efforts by motor-cycle borne CPI(M) cadres, the chief minister said he had taken the matter seriously and disciplinary action would be taken against those responsible.

The delegation later submitted a memorandum to him seeking his intervention in protecting mediapersons from attack. Similar memorandum were also submitted to Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee and WBPCC working president Pradip Bhattacharya.

Source : PTI