Mamata Banerjee Writes To PM Modi Against Appointment Of Interlocutor For Hills, Urges To Revoke Decision

Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has strongly objected the appointment of an interlocutor to discuss issues pertaining to Gorkhas in north Bengal and urged Centre to revoke it, terming the decision as 'unilateral and unconstitutional'.

The Union Home Ministry has appointed a retired IPS officer as an interlocutor to look into Gorkha-related issues in Darjeeling, Kalimpong and Kurseong, prompting a fresh, strongly-worded letter from the CM to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

In her letter, dated 17 November, Banerjee accused the Centre of taking a unilateral decision without any consultation with the state government. She pointed out that she had already written to the Prime Minister on 18 October, requesting a reconsideration of the move.

Although the Prime Minister’s Office acknowledged her letter and stated that the matter would be examined by the Union Home Minister, the state never received any further response. Instead, on 10 November, the Union Home Ministry informed that the interlocutor’s office had already started functioning. Calling this behaviour “astonishing and deeply concerning,” Banerjee said it violates basic administrative propriety.

The Chief Minister reiterated that the Darjeeling hills fall squarely within the jurisdiction of the West Bengal government. She wrote that Darjeeling, Kalimpong and Kurseong are “inseparable parts of West Bengal,” and that the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA) Act, 2011 clearly places all administrative powers of the region under the state government. Under this Act, the term ‘Government’ explicitly refers to the Government of West Bengal. Therefore, the Centre has no constitutional authority to appoint an interlocutor for the hills, she asserted.

Labelling the Centre’s decision as 'illegal, unconstitutional and an abuse of power', Banerjee said the move violates the Seventh Schedule of the Indian Constitution, where matters such as law and order, local governance and regional administration fall under the exclusive domain of the state.

The Chief Minister warned that this action does not merely break the constitutional framework but could also disturb the hard-earned peace and stability of the Darjeeling hills. She claimed that since 2011, the region has remained peaceful due to sustained initiatives by the state government, and alleged that the Centre’s sudden intervention could be politically motivated. “This appears to be an attempt to disrupt the peace and developmental progress in the hills for political gains,” she wrote.

Banerjee concluded by urging the Prime Minister to “immediately withdraw this unilateral and unconstitutional decision.”

The ball is now in the Centre’s court, as the political focus shifts to how the Union government responds to the Chief Minister’s strong objections.

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