CAP raises questions on meeting chaired by Sikkim CM at another State

<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family:&quot;Segoe UI&quot;,sans-serif"><b>GANGTOK,:</b> The Citizen Action Party (CAP) Sikkim has expressed its concerns on the coordination meeting chaired by Chief Minister PS Golay at Siliguri on Sunday regarding the ST status demand for the 12 left-out communities of Sikkim and GTA, West Bengal.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family:&quot;Segoe UI&quot;,sans-serif">“While the cause itself is just and crucial, the location and composition of this meeting—held in a luxurious hotel in another State, and attended by BJP MPs and BJP MLAs from West Bengal without any representation from the Government of West Bengal and the Gorkha Territorial Administration —raises serious and troubling questions about the true intentions behind this gathering,” said CAP Sikkim in a press statement.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family:&quot;Segoe UI&quot;,sans-serif">The CAP Sikkim demanded answers and clarity from the SKM government as to who authorized the meeting.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family:&quot;Segoe UI&quot;,sans-serif">“If this was initiated by the Government of Sikkim, why was it held in Siliguri, West Bengal? Why was it necessary to host such a critical discussion in another State, and why in such an opulent setting? This reeks of ulterior motives and lack of transparency,” said CAP Sikkim senior leader TR Sharma.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family:&quot;Segoe UI&quot;,sans-serif">Sharma asked about the role of the Sikkim CM and cabinet members and questioned that if this meeting was organized by another entity, then why the entire State leadership was including the Chief Minister, cabinet ministers, and MLAs present.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family:&quot;Segoe UI&quot;,sans-serif">“What possible justification could there be for leaving the State en masse to attend a meeting that appears more like a political alliance-building exercise than a sincere attempt to resolve the issues of our communities? Further, the absence of any representatives from Government of West Bengal or the GTA raises major doubts? What led the two major stakeholders to let aside in such meeting?” questioned the CAP Sikkim leader.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family:&quot;Segoe UI&quot;,sans-serif">“Is the SKM government paving the way for a Sikkim-Darjeeling merger? With a BJP MP from West Bengal already proposing a bill in the house to carve out a new State from parts of West Bengal—a proposal openly supported by Raju Bista, the MP from Darjeeling—this meeting raises fears that the SKM government is complicit in an agenda that could lead to the merger of Sikkim and Darjeeling. The Chief Minister’s presence at such a gathering only fuels these suspicions,” said Sharma.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family:&quot;Segoe UI&quot;,sans-serif">The CAP Sikkim leader added: “Hosting such discussions in a different State, with leaders who have openly backed the creation of a new State, sends a clear and dangerous signal: Sikkim’s autonomy and Statehood are at risk, not from outside forces, but from within, possibly from our own elected government. We demand immediate answers from the SKM government. Why has this meeting taken place in such suspicious circumstances? What hidden agenda is being pursued?”<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-family:&quot;Segoe UI&quot;,sans-serif">&nbsp;</span></p><p> </p><p class="MsoNormal"><o:p>&nbsp;</o:p></p>

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