DARJEELING, : Darjeeling MLA Neeraj Zimba has written to Indian President DroupadiMurmu seeking constitutional demerger of Darjeeling and its adjoining areas from the State of West Bengal, considering its historical and administrative legacy.
In a letter addressed to the President of India, Zimba said, “There is a long-standing and unresolved demand for the administrative demerger of the Darjeeling Hills and its adjoining regions from the State of West Bengal and the need for constitutional reconsideration towards conferring an appropriate administrative status under the relevant provisions of the Constitution of India.”
Zimba maintains that this demand is being made not in pursuit of “secessionist sentiment” but in defence of constitutional rectitude and historical justice.“It arises from the deep-seated aspirations of the Indian Gorkhas and the other indigenous hill communities, whose distinct history,identity, and administrative past were assimilated into the State of West Bengal through a post-Independence legislative act devoid of democratic consultation or participatory consent,” said Zimba.
The Darjeeling MLA, in the letter, cites points like the historical and constitutional context where he reasons that the territories that comprise present-day Darjeeling district and its adjoining areas share no organic historical, cultural, or administrative continuity withBengal. He goes on to add how places like Darjeeling along with Kalimpong and Dooars were added to West Bengal in the past.
Zimba also said that the first formal demand for a separate administrative arrangement for this region was submitted in 1907.The other point he mentions in the letter includes the role of the President as protector of the constitution, asking the president to invoke her sacred role not as a formality, but with the solemn hope that will lend her voice and consideration to this cause.
Zimba appealed to the president to constitute a high-level Constitutional commission to examine the legal, historical, and political context of Darjeeling's merger with West Bengal, and to recommend appropriate options for administrative demerger or reorganisation. He also asked the president to initiate a national consultative process involving the Central government, the State government, and regional stakeholders to arrive at a democratic and sustainable political solution along with ensuring the preservation, promotion, and institutional recognition of the unique identity, language, culture, and aspirations of the Indian Gorkhas and other indigenous communities of the Darjeeling region.
“The Indian Gorkhas and the people of Darjeeling have always stood resolute in their patriotism guarding the frontiers, enriching the Republic's diversity and contributing with honour to the service ofthe nation. What they now seek is not separation but recognition, not disruption, but dignified reorganisation,” said Zimba.