What is worrisome about the Bengal situation today is the near-collapse of Centre-state relations—visible via the acrimonious exchanges between the chief minister and the governor—while the state is literally on the boil on two fronts.
On one front is the Siliguri corridor, which is just 50 km as the crow flies from the new flashpoint, the Indo-China-Bhutan tri-junction. Close by, the Gorkha population in Darjeeling has revived its dissent against perceived Bengali dominance, demanding a separate state. If the protesters have taken recourse to arson, the state government too has used force, killing three in firing in the last week.
CM Mamata Banerjee’s rather belated offer of talks has been rejected, with both Gorkha factions asserting they would rather talk to the Centre. Banerjee’s relations with the Centre may be marked with confrontation and recriminations, but the whole thing does not behove well for West Bengal or the nation. When India is caught in a battle of nerves with China, it’s hardly desirable to have the hills on fire. This is not the only challenge before Banerjee’s administrative leadership, though.
The southern tip of Bengal, 24 Parganas, is still recovering from the shock of a sudden eruption of Hindu-Muslim tension, after seven decades, this time triggered by a Facebook post. The CM has blamed the BJP for fanning communal fires. However, law and order being a state subject, a leader such as Banerjee should step back and take a panoramic view of her own actions too.
The balkanisation of Bengal is not a pretty thought. It would be saner for her not to play with fire in the hills to garner anti-Gorkha votes in the northern plains, or to stir parochial sentiments elsewhere. Nor to seek political dividends in a divided Bengal. Bengal is crying for constructive development, not divisive politics. As for the Centre, it has to play the statesman and ensure the parts are held together, without the population getting bruised in the brinkmanship of the local political classes.