Aug. 3: The state government’s effort to seek a consensus on the interim set-up for the Darjeeling hills has met with resistance with the CPRM backing off from a meeting called to discuss the proposal and the other regional outfits reluctant to back any authority supported by Bimal Gurung.

The CPRM is the second largest party in the hills after the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha that is spearheading the statehood movement. Any objection by the CPRM might be a rerun of the Sixth Schedule fiasco, the government fears.

Dawa Sherpa, the convener of the Democratic Front, said after the meeting with state representatives at Writers’ Buildings: “The state has handed us a proposal on the interim set-up and has asked us to make observations. We told them that we could comment only after consulting our friends back home.” Besides the front, a six party anti-Morcha conglomerate in the hills, the GNLF, too had been invited to the meeting, but had refused to attend it.

The government is expecting a reply on the proposal by August 6. Minister Asok Bhattacharya, who represented the state along with Surjya Kanta Mishra, said: “We want to consider the opinion of all parties from the hills before the next round of talks.” Bhattacharya was referring to the next round of tripartite talks that the Centre is expected to convene with the Morcha and the state on August 17.

Today’s proposal to the front was the one prepared by the Centre to set up a Gorkhaland Autonomous Authority and provide legislative powers on 54 transferred subjects. The same draft proposal had been placed at the political-level tripartite talks between the Morcha, the state and the Centre in New Delhi on July 24.

However, with the CPRM categorically saying that it would not support an interim authority, the exercise is expected to be futile. “We will support the interim authority only if the government guarantees to create a separate state on the expiry of this authority (on December 31, 2011). And the authority should also include areas from the Dooars and Terai,” said Taramani Rai, spokesperson for the CPRM. The state is unlikely to give any commitments on these two demands.

The front, too, might not want to endorse any arrangement which the Morcha is trying to work out with the governments for fear of politically losing out to Bimal Gurung’s outfit. “Temporary measures are no longer a solution... Such interim measures are neither feasible nor acceptable,” said Sherpa.

The state on the other hand is desperate for a consensus, as it does not want a repeat of the Sixth Schedule fiasco. Both the Centre and the state had negotiated only with Subash Ghisingh, the president of the GNLF, the then predominant party, to confer special status on the hills. “Since there was no political consensus, the GNLF rivals repeatedly criticised Ghisingh leading to the formation of the Morcha,” said an observer.