Union minister comment on North Bengal-NE merger triggers row

Union minister and West Bengal BJP president Sukanta Majumdar's statement that he submitted a proposal to the Prime Minister to incorporate North Bengal with the neighbouring north-eastern India has triggered a major controversy in the state.

The junior minister, who said he made the proposal to help boost the development of North Bengal, received flak from Bengal's ruling Trinamool Congress as well as his own party. A few others like Darjeeling MP Raju Bista of BJP, however, supported the idea.

State BJP's chief spokesperson Shamik Bhattacharya opposed any move to separate North Bengal from the state. Rajya Sabha MP and Greater Coochebhar leader Ananta Maharaj demanded a separate Coochbehar first, while Kurseong MLA Bishnuprasad Sharma slammed his party's state president over the "utopian" proposal.


Trinamool rejected the idea, with party MP Kalyan Banerjee saying that a central government that would fall in a year and a half was thinking about dividing West Bengal.

Majumdar, who represents North Bengal's Balurghat in the Lok Sabha, said on Wednesday that he had met PM Narendra Modi and submitted a formal proposal on this matter. "Comparing NE and North Bengal's similarities and if North Bengal can be attached with NE, then more central funds can be sent to North Bengal. I don't think the state government will oppose such a proposal and we think they will cooperate," he said.

The PM will make the final decision on the issue, Majumdar said

Rejecting the idea, BJP spokesperson Bhattacharya said: "The central BJP and state BJP's stance is clear that overall development of West Bengal is possible by keeping geographical borders of North Bengal intact. Shyma Prasad and many others, including Jyoti Basu, have dreamt of one Bengal. We never are in favour of the division of Bengal. This is a mis-campaign being run."