The demand voiced by BJP’s Alipurduar MP John Barla for a separate state or union territory for North Bengal was the demand of the people, according to Nisith Pramanik, the minister of state for home affairs. Mr Pramanik further
stated that it is his duty too, as a people’s representative, to honour the demand of the people was.

Attending the BJP’s Shahid Samman Yatra in Malda today, the minister also said that north Bengal had been deprived of development for long. The BJP organised the Yatra to meet family members of the party’s ‘martyrs.’ Mr Pramanik today garlanded 14 statues of eminent personalities of the state, including Shyamaprasad Mukhopadhyay, in front of the district BJP headquarters on Bandh Road under the English Bazaar police station before he met the families in areas like Habibpur, Gazole and Baishnabnagar.

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“Everybody can express his or her own opinion, but people are the most important factor in a democracy. We all saw that the funds allotted for the entire north Bengal can hardly equal the budget for a flyover in Kolkata. So the required development in north Bengal is lacking and we should always honour the emotions and sentiment of the people,” the minister said.

“The judgement given by the people is to be accepted as we have 77 MLAs now from only three earlier, and the TMC government also rode into power with that. The demand for Gorkhaland is also there and the state government formed the GTA (Gorkhaland Territorial Administration), so any demand may arise, but people will finally decide what all needs to be fulfilled. In my case, I am with the people,” he added.

On the CBI investigations ordered by the High Court into post-election violence in the state, he said he welcomed the “historic” judgement. “Many of our activists still cannot return to their homes due to the post-poll violence, and the brutality of the violence has left me trembling,” said the minister.

On the demand in the state for by-elections, Mr Pramanik said that whoever was asking for the by-polls for some Assembly seats must think of a large number of municipalities and corporations which have not seen elections even long after their due time.

“The people are getting deprived of municipal services and haven’t been able to find anyone to whom to look up to with their problems. Both the elections are important,” he added.

On the present situation in Afghanistan, the minister said that the union government had taken the matter very seriously and that all Indians there would be safely brought back. He further said that the union government has always wanted to make internal security “solid” and that it has sought more cooperation from the state governments.