By Vivek Chhetri
Darjeeling: The All Christian Minority Central Committee has passed a resolution to stick to the demand for a separate board for the Christian community in the Darjeeling region.
The decision comes after West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee formed the West Bengal Pahadia Minority Board on February 13 with representatives from Christian, Muslim, Buddhist and other minority communities in the hills such as Bengalis and Marwaris. The notification states that the board will be under the control of the state’s minority affairs and madarsa education department.
The Christian committee held a meeting on February 21 to discuss the recently declared board.
“We have no objection to the board, but we stick to our demand for a separate minority development board for Christians,” Bishop Stephen Lepcha of Darjeeling, who is patron of the central committee, said.
Bishop Lepcha also said the committee had made various representations to the state government which did not consult the Christians before finalizing the details of the board.
To a question, the bishop said: “More than the benefits, what we fear is that there might be quarrel (because of the board).”
Father Solomon Subba of the United Christian Minority Organisation, which is not part of the committee, has been made the chairman of the board, while Arif Khan the vice-chairperson.