Arunachal ST tag stirs hill dismay ... no mention in parliament about the demand of the 11 hill communities

VIVEK CHHETRI, TT, 04 Jan 2019, Darjeeling: Roshan Giri on Thursday released a video of an interaction with Union tribal minister, Jual Oram, where the minister is heard saying that if the "Bharat sarkar" wants the hill communities can be granted tribal status in a jiffy.

The statement comes at a time when the ongoing winter session is expected to come to an end after three working days on January 8.

On Wednesday, the Union cabinet approved a constitutional amendment bill to grant schedule tribe status to certain communities of Arunachal Pradesh. The amendment will be tabled in Parliament.

There was no mention of the of the demand of the 11 hill communities, which has been supported by the Bengal government and all hill parties.

Binay Tamang camp dubbed Giri's decision to post the video as a "desperate move" and added that the hill people Bimal Gurung wants "no excuse" but for the status to be granted in the next three days.

The video is an interaction between Oram and Bimal Gurung faction leaders, which is led by Darjeeling MP, S.S. Ahluwalia. Giri is not seen in the video.

"Anytime ho shakta hai Bharat Sarkar ka…aaj bolega isko lagau bol ke, kaal house me agar ho jayega toh kaal bhi ho shakta hai (if the Bharat Sarkar wants, it (granting of ST status) can happen overnight)," Oram said.

Despite the government having cleared the ST inclusion bill for Arunachal Pradesh, the minister is earlier heard saying that they are trying to clear everyone (other demands included) in one go.

"Many bills are introduced...when it will happen it will happen for all..Sikkim, West Bengal is pending, we will do it for all at one go," said Oram.

If the BJP government fails to introduce the bill, despite earlier assurances, it could spell doom for the party in this region.

Suraj Sharma, spokesman for the Binay camp said: "The video has been released because people of Darjeeling are fed up of lies by Bimal Gurung camp, they have lost their credibility." The 11 hill communities are Bhujel, Gurung, Mangar, Newar, Jogi, Khas, Rai, Sunuwar, Thami, Yakka (Dewan) and Dhimal.