J&K chief minister Omar Abdullah said in Srinagar that the creation of Telangana state would incentivise agitation. “It is fine that you have to create Telangana, but don’t do it piecemeal. Telangana will be created on the basis of agitation. This way agitations are being incentivised,” he said in Srinagar.
Pro-Vidarbha leaders, including Mr Vilas Muttemwar, claimed that the “step-motherly attitude” towards the region by the western Maharashtra-dominated leadership was the main factor for the backwardness of the region. It was pointed out that the States Reorganisation Commis-sion “had considered the demand for a separate Vidarbha state and observed that it could be a self-sufficient and economically viable state,” Mr Muttemwar said. In his letter to Congress president Sonia Gandhi, Mr Muttemwar wrote: “Since 1960 the region remained neglected and is now facing serious problems, including farmer suicides, malnutrition and unemployment.” The Bundelkhand Mukti Morcha, which is set to launch a “padayatra” from Kamtanath temple in Chitrakoot district of Uttar Pradesh to Khajuraho in Madhya Pradesh on December 16, has been demanding the creation of Bundelkhand by carving out seven districts of Uttar Pradesh and 12 of Madhya Pradesh.
Issues ranging from drought and forced migration of people have dominated the politics of the region with political outfits locked in a battle of one-upmanship. The UPA government had approved a package of over `7,000 crore for development of the region with the money to be apportioned between UP and Madhya Pradesh.
“Unfortunately, funds have often not been put to productive use. Moreover, the 27 MLAs belonging to the region have no say in the development initiative,” said the convenor of the morcha, cinema and TV actor Raja Bundela.
The demand for a separate state of Gorkhaland has been raging since the 1980s in Darjeeling, West Bengal. Gorkhaland is being demanded by the majority people of the Darjeeling Hills and people of Gorkha ethnic origin in the Dooars in northwest Bengal. The movement for a state of Gorkhaland witnessed violent agitations led by the then leader of the Gorkha National Liberation Front (GNLF), Subhash Ghising. A truce was called following the establishment of the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council to govern certain areas of Darjeeling district. However, in 2008, a new party, the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM), raised the demand for a separate state of Gorkhaland yet again.
The proposed state of Bodoland consists of areas in the extreme north of the north bank of the Brahmaputra river in Assam. Bodo People’s Front leader and Lok Sabha MP Bwiswmuthiary announced that a public rally at Kokrajhar in Assam has been called on August 5 to renew their demand for a separate Bodoland. “The demand for Bodoland is several decades old. If the Centre can give Telangana, why not Bodoland? We will soon meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi and home minister Sushilkumar Shinde to press our demand,” he said. Officially. the movement for Bodoland was started in 1987 by the All-Bodo Students’ Union led by Upendranath Brahma. This, too, was a violent agitation and resulted in the displacement of nearly one lakh people.