The BJP is confronting fresh posers in the hills which have been one of its bastions for over a decade now as differences have started cropping up within the party and its allies have started to question its stand on a permanent political solution.

Since 2009, the BJP has won the Darjeeling Lok Sabha seat in three back-to-back elections by joining hands with the hill-based parties. In 2021, it also managed to secure some Assembly seats by joining hands with GNLF, one of the prominent political forces in the hills.

However, over the past few days, the party has had to face grievances because of the delay on the part of the Narendra Modi government to meet the aspirations of a permanent political solution for the hills. For most hill residents, this term means the Gorkhaland state.

The GNLF, which is still an ally of the saffron party, has given a strong reminder about the promise and wants the Centre to come up with a permanent political solution ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.

Leaders of the GNLF have said that less than a year is left before the elections but the BJP is yet to make a concrete move about its commitment to the people of the hills. In the 2019 poll manifesto, the BJP said it was “committed to work towards finding a permanent political solution” for the region.

“We have reminded them that residents across the hills have voted them in three successive terms with the aspiration. The time has come for the BJP-led central government to reciprocate,” said Dinesh Sampang, a GNLF spokesperson, said on Sunday.

“For many of us, PPS means Gorkhaland. But we have not seen any steps being taken about it so far. We want the BJP to come out clearly as to what it really understands by PPS,” he added.

Such a clear assertion from the ally comes at a time when Dilip Ghosh, a national vice-president of the BJP, has remarked that their party is against any further division of Bengal.

His remarks irked even his own party leaders. On Saturday, many of them boycotted a meeting called in Darjeeling where Ghosh was supposed to address them.

“There is no point in attending the meeting of a party leader who is speaking against the longstanding demand of the hill people. Our senior leaders should give serious thought to the issue as such remarks would only antagonise the voters across the hills,” a BJP functionary had said.

The boycott by the BJP leaders, mostly mandal presidents, led to a loss of face for the BJP.

Earlier too, some of its leaders in the hills could not stay silent over the Gorkhaland issue.

It was evident from recent remarks of B.P. Sharma, the BJP’s Kurseong MLA, who has time and again raised questions on Gorkhaland to ensure that people support the party.

Now, GNLF leaders have also started flagging the issue.

“We have to raise our voices. The BJP is still our ally and we cannot afford to stay silent after such remarks (of Ghosh) and particularly because the central government has not made any move to meet the demand. Our supporters might raise questions on our stand and we cannot afford it,” said a GNLF leader.

Such developments ahead of rural polls might trouble the BJP in the hills, said political veterans.

“It is evident the BJP is in a fix in the hills. On one hand, it can’t overtly back the Gorkhaland issue because of the strong sentiment across most parts of Bengal against any division of the state, especially when the party intends to win 35 seats from Bengal in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls,” said a hill observer.