Within a few hours after state BJP President Dilip Ghosh stood by Union Minister John Barla and advocated in favour of a separate state for North Bengal, he made a ‘U’ turn and said that no one spoke about the division of the state.

Speaking at a programme in North Bengal on Monday evening, Ghosh said, “No one spoke about Bengal, we are not in favor of state division.” Ghosh’s reaction comes within a few hours after he was criticised within the party for comment on the North-South division of the state.

“No one has said anything about any part of Bengal. The people of North Bengal, the people of Jungle Mahal have been deprived for 60-65 years. They are still going to other states for jobs. Studying, going out for treatment. Shawl leaves, weeping leaves are somehow living life. The demands of human development have not been met,” Ghosh said.

“The grassroots miscreants are taking chances and torturing people. As a result, the residents of these areas think that if they work together, there will be no improvement. So, they have demanded a separate state. The people’s representatives in the area have raised the voice of the people there. We are not in favour of any division,” he added.

Sources close to Ghosh said that he had to swallow his own words after he spoke about the division of the state. Ghosh had said in a programme on Saturday, “The entire responsibility of this lies with Mamata Banerjee. 75 years after independence why do the people of north Bengal have to go to other states for jobs, education and healthcare facilities? In Jangalmahal the situation is the same. Why the women in Jangalmahal will have to depend on sal and tendu leaves for livelihood. Why do they have to go to Odisha, Ranchi and Gujarat for jobs”.

“If they (The BJP MPs) have raised such demands (Bifurcation of the state), then it is not unjustified,” he added.

The remarks of Ghosh triggered debate across the state including the state BJP itself. Ghosh’s standing beside Union Minister and MP from Alipurduar district John Barla who has been demanding separate statehood for long was met with a strong reprisal from the party itself. Senior leaders like Locket Chatterjee and Rahul Sinha spoke against Ghosh on the issue.

Chatterjee who is also an MP from Hooghly had said, “We never want a bifurcation of the state. The culture of Bengal is different. We live in harmony and Bengal is very dear to each one of us. Bengal will remain Bengal from north to south and east to west.”

Chatterjee who took part in drawing portraits of Rabindranath Tagore and sang his songs on Sunday in a program in Hooghly said, “Rabindranath celebrated Rakhi Bandhan’. Those who have Rabindranath in their hearts and minds and their hearts and minds can never divide Bengal”.

National secretary of BJP Rahul Sinha without naming anyone said, “Those who want to change the name of the state and divide the state geographically are insulting Rabindranath Tagore. There is still a section of people in the state who want to divide Bengal,” he said. Sinha narrated how Rabindranath started Rakhi Bandhan in October 1905 to protest against the bifurcation of Bengal.

“This is the time we should remind ourselves of the thoughts of Rabindranath. We should take the message at the state and national level and make people aware of the significance of Rakhi,” he added.

Political analysts believe that this dissatisfaction within the party on the partition of Bengal forced Ghosh to change his stand on the issue.