ST status for left-out Gorkha communities under consideration: Union Home Minister

Amit Shah phones message from Katihar as chopper fails to land in Lebong 

EOI, DARJEELING, APRIL 21, 2024 : In a message sent over the telephone to the people of Darjeeling from Katihar, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said the issue of inclusion of 11 left-out Gorkha communities as scheduled tribes was under consideration.

The Union Home Minister was scheduled to have addressed a meeting at the Lebong Stadium in Darjeeling in support of BJP candidate for the Darjeeling Lok Sabha seat Raju Bista but could not reach the venue of the meeting as his helicopter could not land in Lebong because of bad weather. Shah was scheduled to reach the Lebong ground form the Bagdogra airport at around 10 a.m. in a helicopter.

The crowd, a mix of supporters of the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha, the Gorkha National Liberation Front, the Communist Party of Revolutionary Marxists, the Gorkha Rashtriya Nirman Morcha and the SUMETI Morcha waited till 1 p.m. before being told that the Union Home Minister would not be able to reach. The message of the Home Minister was amplified via the public address system to assure the gathering that the BJP would fulfil its promise. He said the people of the Darjeeling hills, the Terai and the Dooars would definitely get justice under the Constitution.

In his message, Shah said the BJP was the only party that was committed to ensuring peace, progress and development in the hill region. The BJP government would complete the task left unfulfilled by previous governments.

“You will get justice according to the Constitution of the country,” he said. “We are committed to solving the problems of the region. The demand for Scheduled Tribe status for the Gorkha community is under consideration,” Shah said. The Union Home minister praised the Gorkha community for their dedication to safeguard the country and said justice would be done. “I am of the belief that no other communities have sacrificed their lives for the country as much as the Gorkhas have. I want to assure my Gorkha family that the BJP will always be by your side for your fight for justice. And we will ensure you get justice.”Urging the people not to get swayed by rumours of the Opposition parties, the BJP leader said under Prime Minister Narendra Modi the Darjeeling hills would see massive development.

“The opposition parties are spreading rumours. Do not listen to them. Modiji has prepared a host of schemes for the hills in the tourism sector and for the workers of teagardens. We have established labour laws but the Trinamool Congress is not letting us implement it,” he said.

Shah said due to bad weather conditions his helicopter could not land and he was forced to head to Katihar to attend another campaign meeting. 

“I wanted to come to the hills. But because of weather conditions I could not make it and had to return. I apologize to you,” he said. Shah visited Darjeeling in April 2021 to campaign during the assembly election in West Bengal.

Sitting Darjeeling M.P. of the BJP Raju Bista said it would not have been prudent to risk the safety of the Union Home Minister. “I spoke to the captain of the chopper and was informed that because of dense clouds it was dangerous to land. On the insistence of the Home Minister the helicopter took two rounds near the venue of the public meeting and then headed back,” he said. GJM President Bimal Gurung who had earlier in the day expressed his desire to understand the viewpoint of the Union Home Minister was seemingly perturbed by the turn of events but said he had faith in the BJP.

“The Union Home Minister has given his assurance. We have to keep hope and faith,” he said. The incumbent M.P. assured people that the demand for granting tribal status would be fulfilled before2026. “It was difficult to get the nod of the Cabinet because, unlike the CAA, the ST Bill had not been passed.

However, we will definitely get the ST status before the 2026 election and this no one can stop from happening,” Bista said. Bista urged people to vote to end corruption in the hills, while asserting that Central investigation agencies would come to the hills after the election. “There is corruption in the GTA, panchayat and municipalities. But don’t worry the CBI and ED will come. The corrupt politicians and leaders will be sent to Tihar jail,” Bista warned.

Raju Bista described the hill region of Darjeeling, the Terai and the Dooars as a “golden duck.” It was vitally important from the perspective of national security. It was one of the most important destinations for tourism in the entire country, the second largest producer of tea, and ahub of hydro-power, cinchona and medicinal plants. 

The region carried immense potential for cross-border trade and commerce. Instead of taking care of this "golden duck," the Trinamool Congress had harmed the hill region immensely and refused to nurture its potential, he said. 

“They are actively altering the demographics of our region by helping settle Rohingyas and illegal infiltrators in the region. Crime against women has surged, with rampant  goondaism and extortion being the norm, erosion in law and order and the prevalence of massive corruption in all spheres of governance. 

“Development has stalled in our region for the past 13-years, as Trinamool Congress has only plundered our region without giving back anything,” Bista said. His vision was to revitalize the Darjeeling hill, the Terai, and the Dooars, as the economic hub of north Bengal and the north-east