Mamata Banerjee alters the Gorkha dream

It is true. Gorkhaland is no more the dream! That is, the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha has with a little prodding from the Mamata government agreed to shelve the idea of a separate Gorkhland. Instead, it has embraced Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee’s agenda ‘of peace and development’.

This came after two days of talks with the new state government. “We have clinched a deal and the issue is settled,” Mamata said on Tuesday.

Flanked by Morcha leaders she said while she had informed Union home minister P Chidambaram about the outcome of the dialogue, she would request him to hold tripartite talks ASAP — seven days — in Darjeeling.

She dropped enough hints that her government would not entertain any demand for a separate Gorkhaland. “We are people who love both Bengal and Darjeeling. I told their leaders we would create a Switzerland out of the hill town,” she said.

Another important demand they gave up while holding talks with chief secretary Samar Ghosh and state home secretary GD Gautama was the demand for inclusion of parts of Terai in Greater Darjeeling when told that it would only fetch them more trouble as the tribes in these areas would not agree to come under their administration.

The third promise they had to make was not to indulge in agitations. Morcha sources said they realised that with the Congress joining the Mamata government, the Centre would not accede to a separate state.