17 years after Singur protest, Mamata Banerjee meets Tata Sons Chairman N Chandrasekaran

According to the Trinamool Congress, their conversation centred on "deepening the Tata Group's presence in the state".

"The meeting reflected Bengal’s commitment to fostering meaningful public-private partnerships that drive innovation, investment, and inclusive development," the TMC said in a post on X.

Sharing photos of the meeting, the Trinamool Congress wrote: "Smt. @MamataOfficial hosted Shri Natarajan Chandrasekaran, Chairman of Tata Sons and the Tata Group, for a constructive dialogue on Bengal's industrial growth and emerging opportunities."

The meeting comes nearly two decades after Mamata Banerjee fought the CPI(M) regime in West Bengal against the alleged forcible acquisition of farmland for the Tata Motors Nanoplant in the state's Singur.

The 2006 protest, along with similar ones in Nandigram, became a significant turning point in her political career as she was able to overturn the 34-year-old CPI (M) regime in the state.

Banerjee became the chief minister of West Bengal in 2011, ending the three-decade-old left rule.

Before that, in 2008, then Tata Group and Tata Motors Chairman Ratan Tata announced that the company was moving the plant to Gujarat.

He also blamed the Trinamool Congress chief for the move, saying, "I think Ms Banerjee pulled the trigger."

To this charge, Banerjee had then said: "It is an unfortunate comment of an individual blaming me for the pullout decision at Singur."

Now, after nearly two decades, it appears that the perceived animosity between Banerjee and the Tata Group is finally over.