With the situation in Darjeeling district spiraling out of control, the ruling Left Front government has invited 16 political parties in the state for a meeting on June 17 to discuss the issue.

The GJM, however, has been invited to a one-on-one talk with the government the next day.

Banerjee said: “What is the point of an all-party meeting if the aggrieved party is not invited? Why should the government meet the GJM alone? If the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha is not a political party, then why hold meetings with anti-socials? This is not the first time.”

“Earlier also, Buddhababu has held ‘secret’ meetings with the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha.

No one knows till now what transpires in these private meetings,” she added. The Trinamool chief stressed that the blame for the strife in the hills rested with both the CPM and the Congress.

“Both parties have politicised the issue. Every time Assembly elections draw near, there is trouble in the hills. There is hardly any official record to show what has been done about the development of Darjeeling in three decades,” she said.

Terming the state government’s approach to the issue as “casual”, Banerjee said allowing the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha to hold a public meeting does not amount to granting their demand for statehood.

“We had faced the same problem in Singur. On several occasions, the government denied us permission to hold public meetings,” she said.

While reiterating that there can be no further division of the state, the Trinamool chief said there was need to understand what had sparked the latest bout of violence.

“Not inviting the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha to the all-party meet is tantamount to condemning them without giving them an option to present their defence,” she added.

Congress against division of Bengal
The West Bengal Pradesh Congress (WBPCC) stated on Friday that it is against the carving out of a separate Gorkhaland from the northern part of West Bengal.