Amit Shah failed to turn up for his eagerly awaited public meeting in Darjeeling on Sunday, apparently because of “inclement weather”, and addressed the gathering remotely over sitting MP Raju Bista’s phone.
If the stated reason for his absence provoked mirth among political opponents in a largely bright and clear Darjeeling, the lack of specifics on the hills’ issues in his audio speech seemed to trigger some real political “turbulence”.
Shah was to fly in to Lebong, about 9km from the town, around 10am.
Around 12.30pm, Bista told the gathering: “Due to inclement weather conditions, Amit Shahji’s helicopter was not able to take off from Bagdogra for Darjeeling.”
Sources in Siliguri said the weather was fine there.
Data with the weather station in Darjeeling showed that the average wind speed varied from 14mph to 19mph between 10am and 1pm
on Sunday, with a 24-hour rainfall reading of 0.01 inch.
The day’s average relative humidity was 61 per cent, with the maximum temperature at 19 degrees Celsius and the minimum at 15 degrees.
A retired air force official said that various factors, and not just the weather at the landing place, can influence the decision on whether or not to take a helicopter ride.
As members of the crowd, most of them waiting since 9am, got restless, they were offered a compromise. Shah delivered a speech through Bista’s cellphone, which the Darjeeling MP placed in front of a microphone.
“We are with you in the fight for justice. The Constitution of India will provide you with justice,” Shah said, having already left Siliguri, where he had arrived on Saturday evening.
“We are committed to resolving all the problems of the region, and your demand for the inclusion of 11 Gorkha communities (in the Scheduled Tribe list) is under consideration.”
Multiple BJP sources said most people at the Gorkha stadium in Lebong were “disheartened” by Shah’s speech.
Some hill residents are upset because the BJP has failed to deliver on the region’s two most emotive demands despite written commitments in its election manifestos.
In its 2019 manifesto, the BJP had promised a “permanent political solution (PPS)” — without defining the term — and tribal status to 11 Gorkha communities. Most in the hills perceived “PPS” as the state of Gorkhaland.
“Last time, they did not fulfil the promise.... To make matters worse, this time there is no mention of the Darjeeling issue in the BJP’s poll manifesto,” a resident said.
The BJP’s failure to keep the two promises has become an election issue in the hills, with allies like Pratap Khati of the Akhil Bharatiya Gorkha League deserting the saffron party.
Shortly after Shah’s speech, Ajoy Edwards, president of the Hamro Party backing Munish Tamang of the Congress, played political weathercock.
“Just saw it on the news that Honourable Union Home Minister, Amit Shah couldn’t land in Lebong, his failure to land due to bad weather is indeed a turbulence of his unfulfilled promises,” Edwards wrote on various social media platforms.
Rivals are circulating videos of Shah making promises to Darjeeling that have not been met.
At a rally in Lebong on April 13, 2021, before the Bengal Assembly polls, Shah promised a “Gorkha TV channel and a central university in north Bengal”. These are also unmet.
The Bharatiya Gorkha Prajatantrik Morcha (BGPM) took to social media to suggest Shah had probably skipped the Darjeeling meeting because of the relatively poor turnout.
“Lebong total chairs-4883. Only half occupied,” wrote a BGPM leader on social media.
Neeraj Zimba, BJP Darjeeling MLA, said Bista’s supporters were disappointed at Shah’s absence, but added one could do "nothing about the weather".
Bimal Gurung, chief of the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha, which backed Trinamool in the 2021 state polls, but is now supporting the BJP, defended the absence of Darjeeling issues in this BJP manifesto. “They promised to look into our issues in 2019, there is no need to repeat the promise," he said without a trace of irony.