Cooch Behar, Oct. 25: The formation of the Greater Kamta United Forum in Dinhata yesterday is being termed as the rise of a “disruptive force” by mainstream political parties.

“From the very beginning, we have been calling both the Kamtapur People’s Party and Greater Cooch Behar People’s Association divisive forces. These outfits want to create trouble all the time,” said Udayan Guha, the Forward Bloc state committee member.

According to Guha, the leaders of the association had once claimed that they did not support the electoral process and that elections in Cooch Behar were unconstitutional. “These same people later formed the Greater Cooch Behar Democratic Party and now have created an alliance with the KPP and All Koch Rajbangshi Students’ Union (Akrasu),” Guha said. “They have even announced that they would contest polls. These people are confused and keep on changing colours.”

President of the district Congress Shyamal Chowdhury echoed Guha. “This new alliance is a bad indication. Whenever we hear the names of these outfits, we apprehend adversity,” he said.

Chowdhury even compared the chief minister with the Mughal emperor, Aurangzeb, under whose reign, the country went through a troubled time. “Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee is our present day Aurangzeb. He and Jyoti Basu have pushed north Bengal to such a weak state in terms of development that these divisive forces are taking advantage of it,” he said.

Cooch Behar Trinamul Congress president Rabindranath Ghosh said the Greater Cooch Behar Democratic Party had “unfortunately” been lured by the KPP and the Akrasu.

The formation of the alliance has undoubtedly ushered in a change in the political scenario of north Bengal.

The erstwhile Greater Cooch Behar People’s Association and its secretary, Bangshibadan Barman, apparently often used to declare that they would never have any alliance. Bangshi was reportedly against having to do anything with Assam-based outfits.

He had toured all corners of the district and drummed up support for the demand of a separate state of Greater Cooch Behar, claiming that it was declared a “C” category state under the Indian Constitution and its inclusion within Bengal was illegal.

Bangshi is presently in judicial custody following the violence that broke out during an indefinite hunger strike called by the association on September 20, 2005. A police officer, two constables, and two supporters of the association were killed on that day.

Going by Bangshi’s stand against forming any alliance, political parties have now questioned his support to the new forum. According to the parties, only after Bangshi was arrested that the rest of the leaders floated the Greater Cooch Behar Democratic Party and announced its intention to fight polls. It was also in his absence that the new forum was formed.