{{I hope what brings you here is your presence of faculty that distinguishes human beings from those money-making (and, money craving) machines. Don't get me wrong. I too need and value money. But only that much which is... come on, let's forget it...So, let’s move on.}}
Though I come from what people usually call as North Bengal, I have never been to Darjeeling. The closest I have been to the hill areas was back in 2004 or ’05 and that too when I visited places like Mirik and Sevoke. That too for not more than a few hours. So, I can never claim to have seen the hill areas of Bengal that well. Even then, one October morning, we set out on a car from Siliguri (my uncle lives there) for visiting those places. We were scheduled to visit a couple of places – the famous Sevoke Bridge and Mirik, famous for its placid lake and the soothing locality.
As our car was approaching the hill areas (that was the first time I saw an official looking signboard reading some thing like ‘welcome to the jurisdiction of the Gorkha Hill Council’… it did something to me – that board; believe me!), with the passage of every kilometre, the view was fast changing – the temperature was gradually falling, there were so many unfamiliar bright coloured flowers by the roadside, and the occasional local faces too looked de-familiarized. And once we were into any of the localities, Mirik for instance, I couldn’t help myself from thinking – How on earth can this be a part of West Bengal! Not that I have a so-called separatist bent of mind. I am verily against such people and theories that advocate in favour of separation of geo-physical landmasses under the pretext of different culture, religion, language, and so on. But, that had nothing to do with such feeling. Actually, what I felt, these people too are fellow citizens of my very own Bengal (West Bengal that is). Yet I know a nought about them. The way they build their houses, the way they speak, they smile, they interact with unknown people – everything, small and big, was so much removed from what I have so far seen and felt.
Now, do not get me wrong. Yes, I did feel all those quite de-familiarizing. But, never for once did that appear to me to be a substantial reason to demand for a separate state. In a country as diverse as India, it is foolish to think of separation of geographical spaces on basis of such differences. Rather, what I felt was that it was my own fault that I do not know much about these areas, these people, their way of life, and everything that comes with that. Now when there is so much debate, political turmoil, etc. over GJM’s call for a separate state for the Gorkhas, I am (justifiably?) reminded of that.
Who are these people? These Gorkhas? My present address is Kolkata. The place where I say is a multi-storeyed building where several families stay together. At the third floor stays a family – XXX Rai, YYY Rai, and ZZZ Gattani – the nameplate on their door reads so. I am yet to meet them. But from what I get from these names, they belong to what we call as the Gorkhas – people who descended from Nepal to what we today know as Darjeeling District long time back in history. Although I have never met them, I can bet that if I ask somebody as to who they are, the answer will invariably be – Nepalese. And I am sure you people too either have similar answers for these Rai’s and Gattani’s, or come across such answers every now and then. Is there something unnatural about this? Isn’t there something unnatural about these?
Yes, IT IS UNNATURAL. To call a certain section of our fellow citizens as Nepalese (which connotes to being people of Nepal, a separate nation) is amongst the most unnatural as well as unfortunate things. And this unnatural has been a part of our life for long time. As if we are calling a rose a rose! Actually what we feel is natural is shaped by the frequency at which occurs in the society. For instance, what can be more unnatural than blood on straw at the paddy fields? What can be more unnatural than an old woman dying in a market place, in the presence of hundreds of other people, just because she did not get the least medical assistance in the right time? Yet such things are natural to us just because they are happening everyday. Similarly, to call a certain section of our fellow citizens Nepalese is the most unfortunate and unnatural thing. Yet we are doing that. And thereby, unintentionally, we are marginalizing those people who too learn in their schools that India is their motherland, that jana gana mana adhinayaka…bharata bhagyavidhata is their national anthem, that Delhi is their national capital. Yet, we rob them of their very identity day in and day out. We deprive them of their Bharatavarsha. Worst, we never even realize what crime we are committing, how unconstitutional it is!
Now you may ask me as to why am I saying all these?
I have two questions for you:
- Why is there a demand for a separate statehood?
- Why are those Indians called Nepalese?
Waiting for your reply.
[Image Courtesy:
www.astrainfotech.org/]
