The Union Home Ministry on Thursday (April 3, 2025) convened a meeting with Gorkha representatives in New Delhi to address issues concerning the Gorkha community.
“During the meeting, various matters were discussed in detail and it was made clear by the government that the Central Government is working with utmost sensitivity to resolve the issues related to Darjeeling, Terai and Dooars,” a statement by the Press Information Bureau (PIB) said.
The meeting was chaired by Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai and Darjeeling BJP MP Raju Bista also participated in the meeting. Mr. Rai assured the participants in the meeting that the Union government would resolve the issues of Gorkhas within the constitutional framework in coordination with the Government of West Bengal. Darjeeling MLA Neeraj Zimba, Kalchini MLA Bishal Lama, Gorkha National Liberation Front president Man Ghising, Gorkha Janmukti Morcha chief Bimal Gurung were among the people who participated in the meeting.
“During the meeting, various matters were discussed in detail and it was made clear by the government that the Central Government is working with utmost sensitivity to resolve the issues related to Darjeeling, Terai and Dooars,’ the PIB statement added.
The demand for creation of a separate State of Gorkhaland has been the fulcrum of politics in the hills since the 1980s. In 2019, the BJP manifesto for Lok Sabha polls had referred to a phrase “permanent political solution” for the region. In 2024, the BJP manifesto had no mention of the phrase.
The Darjeeling hills have been electing BJP MPs and BJP-supported MLAs for the past several decades. The Trinamool Congress government is against any division of the State and also has support of some hill parties like Bharatiya Gorkha Prajatantrik Morcha led by Anit Thapa.
Published – April 04, 2025 06:08 am IST