MHA Forms Committee To Draft Final Gorkha Accord After Shah Meeting
· India · The Hindu, The New Indian Express
The Union Ministry of Home Affairs has constituted a committee, chaired by interlocutor Pankaj Kumar Singh, to draft the final agreement on the long-standing Gorkha issue, BJP MP Raju Bista announced on August 22, 2026. The committee was formed following a key meeting in Sukna, in the Darjeeling foothills, between Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Gorkha leaders, and West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari. The meeting aimed to find a permanent political solution for the hill people within the constitutional framework, in line with the BJP's pre-poll promise. The gathering coincided with the 38th anniversary of the 1988 Gorkha Accord, which led to the creation of the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council. Pankaj Kumar Singh, a retired IPS officer and former deputy national security advisor, was appointed as the government's interlocutor for the issue in October 2025. The West Bengal chief minister also met with Darjeeling hill leaders during the visit and was expected to address concerns aro
Why it matters
The Gorkha community in Darjeeling has long agitated for greater autonomy and a separate state, and this committee’s drafting of a final agreement could determine the region’s future political structure within West Bengal and the constitutional framework.
Read the original report — The Hindu
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