Bharatiya Gorkha Parisangh urges MP Raju Bista to exempt Darjeeling from CAB

Gangtok: The Bharatiya Gorkha Parisangh (BGP) has written to Darjeeling MP Raju Bista stating that Darjeeling must be kept out of Citizenship (Amendment) Bill (CAB) for the same reasons as have been given for Sixth Schedule and Inner Line Permit (ILP) areas.
In a memorandum to Bista, BGP national working president Munish Tamang said that the argument behind this exemption was that the areas belong to vulnerable communities whose language and culture might be completely overrun by the large scale influx or settlement of outsiders, particularly those from Bangladesh.
“You are aware that our hills, Terai and Dooars area have similar conditions to those areas, which have been kept out of purview of the CAB. Our areas have also witnessed large demographic changes that are well documented. Geographically, too, we are vulnerable to large scale influx from Bangladesh. Already, we are culturally and linguistically marginalised,” the BGP in a memorandum said.
The BGP also requested the MP to immediately seek similar measures as have been made available to the Sixth Schedule and the Inner line Permit (ILP) areas such that the provisions of the CAB will not be extended to the state.
“This will ensure that the cultural and linguistic identity of the hills, Terai and Dooars is protected and the people of these areas feel safe,” the memorandum further added.

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