Kolkata: West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has decided to learn the Gorkhali language to better communicate with the people of the Darjeeling hills in North Bengal, who are predominantly Gorkhas. He expressed this desire while addressing a function to mark the birth anniversary of Nepali poet Bhanu Bhakta. He said that he had already found a way to learn Gorkhali.
“One of my nephews is getting married to a girl from Kurseong. Both are doctors by profession. I have decided to learn Gorkhali from her after marriage,” the chief minister said. Speaking on the occasion, he mentioned the life of Bhanu Bhakta and said that this great Nepali poet never believed in creating division among the people. “We in Trinamool Congress talk of unity among people. We believe that one can become a true leader only if he works among the people,” the chief minister said.
On Wednesday morning, Banerjee walked the streets of Darjeeling and interacted with people, especially children. He gifted chocolates to the children and also participated in photo sessions with them. Incidentally, West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar and Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma were also in Darjeeling. On Wednesday, the Governor called the Chief Ministers of both the states for tea. After tea, the Chief Minister said that it was just a courtesy call and there was no discussion on politics. Asked whether there was any discussion between him and Biswa Sarma on the upcoming presidential elections, the chief minister said, “How is this possible as we are from two different parties?”
He declined to comment on the controversy over the new form of the national emblem. “I need to study that matter first and before that, I won’t comment,” she said.
(Except for the title, this story has not been edited by Zee News staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)