WB CM sanwiched

West Bengal chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee is getting sandwiched between the demands of Subhash Ghisingh, chief of Gorkha National Liberation Front, that controls the autonomous Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council (DGHC), and Bimal Gurung, leader of Gorkha Janamukti Morhca and a former Ghising supporter.

While Ghising has warned of violent agitations if there is any delay in the inclusion of Darjeeling in the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution, Guring, who is spearheading the movement against the bill, said demands for Gorkhaland will be revived if the bill is passed.

The bill was scheduled to be passed in the winter session of Parliament but had to be referred to a standing committee following opposition from the BJP. Bhattacharjee said that the standing committee recommendations were expected during the budget session and that he was hopeful that the bill would be passed in the same session. The assembly on Wednesday passed a resolution backed by all parties, except Trinamul Congress, calling for early special status for the hill district.

Darjeeling district comprises four sub-divisions of Darjeeling, Kalimpong, Kurseong in the hills and Siliguri in the plains. On December, 6, 2005, a tripartite agreement was signed between the Centre, GNLF and the West Bengal government proposing inclusion of the hill sub-divisions in the Sixth Schedule under which the district council will enjoy more executive power similar to councils in Assam, Meghalaya, Mizoram and Tripura.

Source: DNA