State BJP to visit Darjeeling on Sixth Schedule

A team from the BJP state committee will visit the Darjeeling hills to find out what political parties, NGOs and the common man have to say on the Sixth Schedule status.

“In a situation where the demand for a separate state has once again come to the forefront, our central leadership feels it necessary to know what the people in the Darjeeling hills have to say on the special status,” said Rahul Sinha, the state BJP secretary, here today. “A state-level team will visit Darjeeling and submit a report to the central committee before the parliamentary panel visits the region.”

The BJP, which does not enjoy much support in the state, has of late assumed an important role after its MPs objected to the passing of the special status bill in Parliament.

For the special status, the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution has to be amended.

Earlier this month BJP leader Sushma Swaraj had said it was an established parliamentary convention to refer a new bill to the Standing Committee.

In this case, it was all the more desirable as it was a Constitution amendment bill and there were many misgivings about it, she had said.

The state leader, however, was cautious about the BJP stand. “We are not aligned to either of the lobbies — those for the status and those against it. But we feel it is better to cross check the demography of the hills as the percentage of tribes are considerably less here while the status is meant for development of areas dominated by tribes.”

Sinha confirmed that he had met the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha leaders (who are against the special status), but added that his party’s doors were open to anyone seeking help to resolve the hill crisis.

Source: The Telegraph