The committee will finalise the modalities of an agreement under the Constitution, with interlocutor Pankaj Kumar Singh leading the process.
The Gorkhaland demand has persisted for decades, with earlier arrangements such as the DGHC and GTA failing to meet hill people’s aspirations.
The latest move follows tripartite talks involving Amit Shah, Gorkha leaders and the West Bengal government, with Darjeeling’s strategic location adding to the stakes.
The Centre has moved towards addressing the long-standing political demands of the Gorkha community in the Darjeeling hills, constituting a committee to draft an agreement and finalise modalities for a “permanent political solution” within the constitutional framework.
The decision followed a tripartite meeting chaired by Union Home Minister Amit Shah in Sukna on Saturday, involving Gorkha leaders, the West Bengal government and other stakeholders. According to PTI, the meeting discussed demands relating to a distinct identity, a permanent political solution and recognition under the Constitution.
Constitutional Roadmap
The Ministry of Home Affairs said a committee under former Deputy National Security Adviser and current interlocutor Pankaj Kumar Singh would finalise the details of the proposed agreement. Shah also assured the community that other demands would be considered sympathetically and that adequate Central funding would help address pending issues.
Gorkha Janmukti Morcha leader Roshan Giri said the leadership was committed to finding a solution through constitutional means. “Whatever solution is reached to address the issue will have to be under the constitutional framework,” he said, according to PTI.
BJP Darjeeling MP Raju Bista said the meeting was held on the date on which the Gorkha accord was signed in 1988. The accord between the Centre, West Bengal government and Gorkha National Liberation Front had led to the creation of the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council after a violent agitation for a separate Gorkhaland.
Long-Standing Demand
The demand for a separate State of Gorkhaland, comprising parts of the Darjeeling hills, Terai and Dooars, has continued for several decades. The region has witnessed periods of shutdowns and violence over the statehood demand, including a 100-day agitation in 2017 that claimed 11 lives, reported The Hindu.
Previous arrangements, including the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council in 1988 and the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration in 2011, have failed to meet the aspirations of sections of the hill population, according to The Hindu. The demand for self-rule is rooted in the assertion that the region is ethnically and linguistically distinct from the rest of West Bengal.
Permanent Political Solution
The term “permanent political solution” has been part of the BJP’s political discourse since its 2019 Lok Sabha election manifesto, The Hindu reported. The Centre had appointed Pankaj Kumar Singh as interlocutor in October 2025 to hold discussions on issues concerning the Darjeeling hills, Dooars and Terai.
The latest committee is therefore the latest step in a series of attempts to address the issue through tripartite dialogue. Any eventual settlement would have wider political and strategic implications, given Darjeeling’s location near Nepal and Bhutan and its proximity to the Siliguri Corridor, the narrow land link connecting mainland India with the Northeast.
