Kolkata, Oct 18 || West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, on Saturday, had written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi opposing the decision of the Union government to appoint former Deputy National Security Advisor (NSA) and ex-Director General of the Border Security Force, Pankaj Kumar Singh, as an interlocutor for the tripartite talks over a permanent political solution to the longstanding demand for a separate Gorkhaland statehood, forking out the hills of Darjeeling, Kalimpong, and Kurseong, and the parts of the plans in the Terai and Dooars regions in north Bengal.
"I am surprised and shocked to know that the Union government has appointed retired IPS officer Pankaj Kumar Singh as an interlocutor to hold discussions on the issues relating to Gorkhas in Darjeeling hills, Terai and Dooars regions of West Bengal," the letter said.
In the letter, Chief Minister Banerjee has claimed that the decision to appoint the interlocutor was taken without consultation with the state government although the matters related to the appointment related to the "governance, peace and administrative stability of the area under Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA)", an autonomous body under the West Bengal government.