Cadres morally justified: CM

8220;The forced entry of cadres in Nandigram8217;s villages would not have happened if the CRPF arrived on time. We wrote to the Centre on October 27 requesting for additional forces. On November 5, the Centre wrote back saying it was unable to provide us the force. I spoke to Home Minister Shivraj Patil and External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee and asked again. On November 10, we were told they would arrive on November 12. If the Centre had taken prompt action, cadre activity in Nandigram could have been prevented,8221; Bhattacharjee said.

Reacting to the CM8217;s comments, Trinamool Congress general secretary Mukul Roy said: 8220;Bhattacharjee is a fascist and a killer. He has no right to sit on the CM8217;s chair, even for a minute. He should be behind bars.8221;

Back from Russia, Prime Minister Manmhan Singh also called up Bhattacharjee on Tuesday to gauge the situation in Nandigram, CPIM sources said. Singh8217;s call came when the CM was on his way to the Raj Bhavan to meet Governor Gopal Krishna Gandhi.