<p>After a brief lull, another BJP leader in West Bengal on Saturday demanded statehood for the north Bengal region alleging lack of development since Independence.</p>.<p>His statement comes after Alipurduar MP and Union minister John Barla, and several other BJP leaders in the region, demanded Union territory status or statehood for north Bengal. Barla, however, has not been very vocal about the demand after being made the Union Minister of State for Minority Affairs.</p>.<p>"No discernible development has taken place in north Bengal since Independence. The region has not got any AIIMS or even good schools in all these years. It remains deprived, discriminated and exploited.</p>.<p>"There is a demand for statehood among the people of north Bengal and there is a logic behind it," Baren Chandra Barman, the BJP MLA of Coochbehar's Sitalkuchi, where five people were killed, including four in CISF firing, during the assembly elections earlier this year.</p>.<p><strong>Also read: <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/national/mamata-banerjees-proposed-anti-bjp-front-likely-to-face-leadership-crisis-1014967.html" target="_blank">Mamata Banerjee's proposed anti-BJP front likely to face leadership crisis</a></strong></p>.<p>Responding to Barman's statement, TMC Coochbehar district chief Partha Pratim Roy said, "This unmasks the true self of the BJP and its doublespeak. While the state BJP leadership says the party doesn't endorse such comments, important leaders continue making such statements without being censured."</p>.<p>He asserted that the TMC will fight any attempt to divide West Bengal and hit the streets if needed.</p>.<p>The latest demand for bifurcation of West Bengal came over a month after Barla demanded that a Union territory be carved out of the region, which has strategic significance, to speed up its development and ensure its security.</p>.<p>His demand created a political storm, with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee accusing the BJP of "hatching a conspiracy" to divide West Bengal.</p>.<p>State BJP chief Dilip Ghosh had said that the party does not endorse Barla's "personal views" and opposes any plan to divide West Bengal.</p>.<p>The saffron party, however, called for uniform development of all regions of the state and not merely areas near capital Kolkata. </p>
<p>After a brief lull, another BJP leader in West Bengal on Saturday demanded statehood for the north Bengal region alleging lack of development since Independence.</p>.<p>His statement comes after Alipurduar MP and Union minister John Barla, and several other BJP leaders in the region, demanded Union territory status or statehood for north Bengal. Barla, however, has not been very vocal about the demand after being made the Union Minister of State for Minority Affairs.</p>.<p>"No discernible development has taken place in north Bengal since Independence. The region has not got any AIIMS or even good schools in all these years. It remains deprived, discriminated and exploited.</p>.<p>"There is a demand for statehood among the people of north Bengal and there is a logic behind it," Baren Chandra Barman, the BJP MLA of Coochbehar's Sitalkuchi, where five people were killed, including four in CISF firing, during the assembly elections earlier this year.</p>.<p><strong>Also read: <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/national/mamata-banerjees-proposed-anti-bjp-front-likely-to-face-leadership-crisis-1014967.html" target="_blank">Mamata Banerjee's proposed anti-BJP front likely to face leadership crisis</a></strong></p>.<p>Responding to Barman's statement, TMC Coochbehar district chief Partha Pratim Roy said, "This unmasks the true self of the BJP and its doublespeak. While the state BJP leadership says the party doesn't endorse such comments, important leaders continue making such statements without being censured."</p>.<p>He asserted that the TMC will fight any attempt to divide West Bengal and hit the streets if needed.</p>.<p>The latest demand for bifurcation of West Bengal came over a month after Barla demanded that a Union territory be carved out of the region, which has strategic significance, to speed up its development and ensure its security.</p>.<p>His demand created a political storm, with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee accusing the BJP of "hatching a conspiracy" to divide West Bengal.</p>.<p>State BJP chief Dilip Ghosh had said that the party does not endorse Barla's "personal views" and opposes any plan to divide West Bengal.</p>.<p>The saffron party, however, called for uniform development of all regions of the state and not merely areas near capital Kolkata. </p>