KLO chief Jibon Singha resurfaces with renewed statehood call; slams Bengal govt

Cooch Behar: Kamtapur Liberation Organisation (KLO) chief Jibon Singha has once again reignited the demand for a separate state, launching a scathing attack on the Bengal government.

In a video message released on Thursday from an undisclosed location, the fugitive leader accused the “Kolkata government” of unconstitutional occupation and exploitation of Cooch Behar and its indigenous communities.

“This government is not of our nation,” Singha said in the video. “The Kolkata-based administration has illegally seized the Category C princely state of Cooch Behar. It is systematically looting the resources of the Koch and Kamtapur regions, and encouraging infiltration from Bangladesh to reduce the Koch Rajbanshis to a minority in their own land.”

Alleging state-sponsored oppression, Singha accused the government of using party-backed goons and police to unleash atrocities against the Koch Rajbanshi community. “This administration is the enemy of the Koch Rajbanshis and is deliberately trying to erase their identity,” he claimed.

Singha also issued a call for unity among various ethnic groups, including the Koch Rajbanshis, Adivasis, Gorkhas, Nashya Sheikhs, Bengalis and others, urging them to come together, rising above religious and caste lines in pursuit of regional autonomy.

Reacting to the video, Trinamool Congress state spokesperson Partha Pratim Roy dismissed Singha’s remarks, terming the timing “politically motivated”. “Jibon Singha only surfaces before elections,” Roy said. “He (Singha) speaks of nationalism and land rights but remains silent on crucial issues like the NRC notice recently served to Dinhata resident Uttam Kumar Brijwasi by the Assam government,” he added.

Roy further alleged that Singha was “operating under the protection of the BJP-led Central government”.

“He has become a pawn in the BJP’s political game, delivering a script written in Delhi. His relevance is fading,” he added.

The Kamtapur Liberation Organisation (KLO) was formed on December 28, 1995, by students from the indigenous Rajbongshi community. The outfit was banned by the Government of India in 1997.