As the burning of the Vedic Village Spa and Resort adds fresh fuel to the heated land acquisition debate in West Bengal, guess who may find his hands singed? The state’s Minister for Land and Land Reforms, Abdur Rezzak Mollah, better known for his strong opposition to land for industry and for his “simple” lifestyle. In the long list of those known to have enjoyed the five-star luxuries of the resort — which was allegedly raised on illegally acquired land — Mollah’s name figures prominently.

CPM’s Minister for Tourism Manabendra Mukherjee is also reported to have been a regular visitor to Vedic Village.

Mollah says he went to the resort for “treatment”. “My Ayurveda consultant, Padyumna from Kerala, examines me in his chamber at the spa. His other chamber is at Belle Vue (clinic), but I preferred the Vedic spa to avoid the Belle Vue crowd.”

Fingers have been pointed at CPM ministers and party functionaries since last week’s incident, when a football match between two teams — one sponsored by the Vedic Village management and the other by local villagers — turned violent and resulted in the attack on the spa.

Angry that were “armtwisted” into handing over land to the spa management, villagers burnt down property worth crores during a late-night rampage.

Charges swirled about irregular land acquisition, and involvement of CPM leaders. Rezzak himself was accused of helping the resort’s owner, Raj Kisore Modi, get 44 acres of government land at a price much less than the market rate.

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