Minorities march on hill street- Fear of being overshadowed gone, time to voice protests

Darjeeling, Aug. 25: Social and religious issues so long overshadowed by the larger cause of statehood has starting resurfacing in the hills, now that a political settlement has been reached on Darjeeling with the signing of the agreement to set up the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration. Hundreds of Buddhists today took to the streets in Darjeeling to revive some of their longstanding demands, one of them being a paid holiday on the birthday of Lord Buddha. The Lepchas, an indigenous community, also brought out a rally to demand a development council. The Buddhists made the demands under the banner of the All Buddhist Minority Welfare Association, which consists of various Gorkha communities like the Tamangs, Gurungs and non-Nepali tribes like the Sherpas, Bhutias and Yolmos. “We had been wanting a holiday on (Buddha Purnima) since 1980 but the Left Front government had not paid heed to our demands. We are hopeful that the present government will fulfil our demand. Even Gorkha Janmukti Morcha president Bimal Gurung had supported our demand,” said M.S. Bomzon, the president of the association. Buddha Purnima is currently a sectional holiday, which means that government employees who are Buddhists can take a day-off. “But there are a large number of workers in the tea gardens and the cinchona plantations (of Buddhist faith) and they have to work during Buddha Purnima,” said Bomzon. If the state government declares a gazette holiday on Buddha Purnima, it will be extended to all sectors, including tea. The Buddhists are also aggrieved that they have no representative in the West Bengal Minority Commission. “We would want at least one Buddhist, preferably from north Bengal, to be made a member of the commission so that our voices can be heard. Despite being minorities we have no say in the state,” said Bomzon. Religious minorities, which includes Buddhists, Christians, Muslims and Jains, make up about 40 per cent of the hill population. “The state government has come up with a policy to declare a particular district Minority Concentrated District (MCD) if the minorities form 25-30 per cent of the population. But the same status has not been extended to Darjeeling district despite its higher concentration of minorities,” said Bomzon. The association claimed that 12 districts in Bengal have been accorded this status. “The government has accorded this status where the concentration of Muslim population is high. They have conveniently forgotten us,” said Bomzon. “An MCD status would entail benefits for construction of houses and stipends for education to minority members, among others.” North Dinajpur, South Dinajpur, Malda, Murshidabad and Cooch Behar are among the 12 MCDs in north Bengal. A district is eligible for MCD status if any minority group has a population of 20 per cent and above. The minority population of the district then enjoys the benefits of uplift programmes funded by the Centre. The purpose is to bring these districts, in terms of development and growth, at level with the national average. But minorities living in other districts do not enjoy these benefits since non-MCD districts are considered more prosperous. Darjeeling district magistrate Mohan Gandhi said in an MCD, a an office of the minority development officer will be set up to implement various schemes that may be announced by the state government for MCDs. Apart from Buddhists, the Lepchas are agitating for a development council to look after the community’s interests. The Lepchas, known to be one of the original inhabitants of the hills, brought out a rally in town today. In Calcutta, 61 of their agitating supporters were arrested in Calcutta for defying Section 144 and marching towards Writers Buildings. The Lepchas have been agitating in Calcutta since August 9. Another 60 members of the community were rounded up on August 22 when they were demonstrating near the Writers’ Buildings. They were all released later. Bhupendra Lepcha, convener of the Lepcha Right Movement, which is spearheading the agitation, said: “We have also lined up a series of agitation.” The agitation starts from tomorrow with a pen-and-chalk down strike by employees and teachers of the community across the state from 11am to 1pm. “We will also start a mass indefinite hunger strike from September 19 in Darjeeling, Kalimpong, Mirik, Siliguri, Calcutta and Delhi,” said Bhupendra. The community has also called a 12-hour bandh on September 20 followed by blockade of national highways and railway tracks, civil disobedience movement and indefinite strike after the Pujas. -TT(VIVEK CHHETR)