BJP promises hill `solution'

VIVEK CHHETRI, TT, 09 Apr 2019, Darjeeling: The BJP's manifesto for the 2019 general election has promised attempts to find a "permanent political solution to the issue of Darjeeling Hills", conferment of Scheduled Tribe status on 11 Gorkha communities and reservation of seats for Limbus and Tamangs in the Sikkim Assembly.

The BJP's promise with regard to the Darjeeling hills for 2019 were different from its manifestos in 2009 and 2014 in terms of phraseology.

"We are committed to work towards finding a permanent political solution to the issue of Darjeeling Hills, Siliguri Terai and Dooars region," reads the 2019 manifesto released in New Delhi on Monday.

In the 2009 and 2014 manifestos, the BJP had said: "The BJP will sympathetically examine and appropriately consider the long pending demands of the Gorkhas, the Adivasis and other people of Darjeeling district and the Dooars region." Ajoy Edwards, a steering committee member of the GNLF that is backing the BJP in the Darjeeling Lok Sabha seat, said the 2019 manifesto was clear with no ambiguous words.

Keshav Pokhrel, a central committee member of the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha's Binay Tamang faction, said: "The BJP now only talks about finding a permanent political solution, a stand which is the same as that of the Congress, CPM and Trinamul. We had interpreted `pending demands of the Gorkhas' as support for Gorkhaland." Edwards, however, sought to refute Pokhrel's opinion: "We had always said we wanted a political solution for the hills, which should be a constitutional provision not less than the Sixth Schedule status. It could be a Union territory or even statehood." Pokhrel said the ST status assurance was an "eyewash". But Edwards said the demand would be fulfilled this time.

The CPRM claimed the way the manifesto was written was largely because of the CPRM's pressure before extending support to BJP candidate Raju Bista in Darjeeling.

Sikkim Democratic Front spokesman P. D. Rai also raised doubts about the manifesto.

Additional reporting byAvijit Sinha in Siliguri and Rajeev Ravidas in Gangtok.