Jaswant Singh stresses strategic importance of creating Gorkhaland

As the indefinite bandh in Darjeeling entered its fourth day, Senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Jaswant Singh on Tuesday stressed the strategic importance of granting Gorkhaland the status of a separate state and accused the Congress of giving in to the Telangana state demand for the sake of votes.

"The demand for Gorkhaland is the oldest, most valid and most important demand for a new state because Darjeeling is the only part of the country which shares four international borders. Understand the importance of this fact-on one side is China, on the other are Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan. Chumbi Valley is also not far. Darjeeling is on top of what is known as the Chicken's Neck, or the North Bengal corridor. Today if there is any prospect to stop the Bangladeshi infiltration into India, it is the creation of Gorkhaland," Singh said.

Saying that the situation in Darjeeling was a matter of great national concern, Singh said the agitation was of "high national priority".

Targetting the Mamata Banerjee-led West Bengal government, Singh-who represents Darjeeling constituency in the Lok Sabha-criticized, what he called "the lapse in communication" by the Trinamool Congress (TMC) government in their communication with the citizens of the Darjeeling area.

"Political discourse between the citizens and the government of Bengal has come to a standstill. This is an extremely worrisome and, to my mind, a very negative development," Singh said.

Singh also took the opportunity to hit out at the Congress-led Central Government, accusing the ruling party of indulging in vote bank politics by announcing the creation of Telangana in close proximity to the 2014 Lok Sabha elections.

"The demand for Telangana was only 50 years old but the government gave it priority for the sake of votes. It is a saddening development. I appeal to the government and the media to take this demand for Gorkhaland to the people of this country," Singh added.

The Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) has been on an indefinite shutdown since Tuesday, pressing their demand for Gorkhaland as a separate state to be carved out of parts of Darjeeling and Jalpaiguri districts of northern West Bengal.

In July 2011, a tripartite agreement was signed between the GJM, the West Bengal government and the Centre for setting up an autonomous and elected hill council, Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA), vested with more powers than its predecessor-the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council.

Presently, the GJM runs the GTA after sweeping its maiden elections held in July 2012.

According to reports, members of the GJM who have been camping in New Delhi since Friday are scheduled to meet Finance Minister P. Chidambaram on Tuesday afternoon.

After the decision to carve out Telangana from Andhra Pradesh was made public, the demand for creation of other states has grown louder throughout the country. There have been demands and protests to divide Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Assam and West Bengal.