Nobel laureate economist Amartya Sen was summoned by a notice threatening eviction in Visva Bharati’s land grab case. The notice asked him to appear in person or his representative at the conference hall of the central admission building of Visva Bharati on March 29. In view of that notice, Amartya Sen sought time from Visva Bharati by writing a counter letter through his lawyer on Friday.
Amartya Sen’s lawyer Gorachand Chakraborty told Samakal that the Joint Registrar and Estate Officer of Visva Bharati recently sent a notice asking why Amartya Sen should not be evicted from Pratichi’s excess land. In view of that notice we have sought time. Amartya Senke is currently out of the country. In his absence, due to special reasons, there is a problem in getting some necessary documents related to the land. So I have asked for additional four months. Letters have been sent to both the Joint Register and the Estate Officer. I have heard that they received the letter even though they did not give a copy.
Incidentally, since 2006, there has been tension with the Nobel laureate economist Amartya Sen over the 13 decibel land of Visva Bharati University. Recently, that debate has come to a head. A few days ago, when this economist was staying at Pratichi’s house in Santiniketan, the Visva Bharati authorities sent him a notice to vacate the premises of 13 decibels soon. A strong debate started around that notice. When the controversy escalated, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee herself reached Santiniketan and handed over her land documents to Amartya Sen.
Amartya Sen’s grandfather Pandit Kshitimohan Sen was an associate of Kabiguru Rabindranath Tagore in establishing Visva Bharati. The Sen family has been living in the ‘Pratichi’ house in Santiniketan since the time of Kabiguru. In 1943, this land was leased for 99 years in the name of late Ashutosh Sen, father of Amartya Sen. Amartya Sen recently applied to register his name instead of Ashutosh Sen’s record 1.38 acres of that lease. The Department of Land and Land Reforms, Government of West Bengal recently responded to the plea and transferred the land records in the name of Amartya Sen.
