Mamata Banerjee on Tuesday said in no uncertain terms that she would not allow further division of Bengal, the message intended for identity-based political outfits in north Bengal which had recently raised the demand for separate states.
“I am ready to give my blood but will not let Bengal divide,” the chief minister said while speaking at a public meeting at the Parade Ground in Alipurduar town.
This is not the first time that Mamata has made such a statement. But the firm message assumes significance in the backdrop of some recent developments in north Bengal.
Ahead of the chief minister’s visit to north Bengal, a video clip purportedly with a message from Jeevan Singha, the self-styled chief of the Kamtapur Liberation Organisation, a banned terror outfit, surfaced. In the video, Singha appealed to Mamata not to oppose the separate Kamtapur state. Some armed men were also seen in the video.
On Tuesday, Mamata said: “Some so-called leaders are issuing threats these days. I want to make it clear that you can hold me at gunpoint….. I have seen such guns and I don’t need much time to take them away.”
Himanta Biswa Sarma, the BJP chief minister of neighbouring Assam, had hinted in December that his government was preparing to hold negotiations with the KLO leadership.
The Trinamul Congress government in Bengal didn’t show any interest in holding talks with the KLO. Besides, questions were also raised on why the Assam government would hold talks with the banned outfit.
On Tuesday, the saffron camp came in Mamata’s line of fire. “All these are happening because of the BJP’s indulgence. Whenever there is an election round the corner, this party tries to bring up such issues to divide people for votes but eventually, their promises fall flat. The party had promised that it would give Gorkhaland but till date, nothing has happened. They have always tried to trigger a tussle between the residents of the hills and the plains and among different communities. We have stopped it,” she said.
In the past few months, a number of BJP legislators elected from north Bengal had demanded the separate north Bengal state on one pretext or the other. “It was evident that the chief minister would make her stand clear today (Tuesday), especially because along with the BJP leaders, some other regional political parties, which have the support of Rajbanshis, also intensified their activities for a separate state,” said an observer.
