Merger of Part-C State Cooch Behar with West Bengal as District

During the Freedom struggle, Rajbanshis of North Bengal or Koch Rajbanshis Assam took part in all activities under the banner of Indian National Congress. Even the native Rajbanshis of the princely State of Cooch Behar unconditionally actively supported the Congress party in pursuance of freedom. Numerous Rajbanshi people courted arrest during different stages of the freedom struggle. Most of these people had deep faith on the Congress Party that spearheaded the freedom struggle. Indian Independence Act, at last was passed in British Parliament on the 18th July 1947 and India became a free nation on the 15th August 1947. The kingdom of Cooch Behar, which was reduced to a much smaller in size, by a document signed by Maharaja Jagaddipendra Narayan, ceded it to the free India on the 28th August 1949.

Subjects of the erstwhile king of Cooch Behar were given all possible of assurances by the leadership of Dominion of India for overall development and fulfilling social-economic-political aspirations of the subjects of the erstwhile princely state.

A widespread dissatisfaction among the people of Cooch Behar was observed against proposed merger of Cooch Behar with West Bengal. When the decision on merger of Part ‘C’ state Cooch Behar with West Bengal was mooted in the first week of December, 1949, protests erupted amongst the local Cooch Behari people who were mostly the caste Hindu Rajbanshi. Hitasadhini Sabha led by majority of Muslim leaders and few Rajbanshi leaders with support of Jogendra Nath Mondal, a central cabinet minister of Pakistan had favoured Cooch Behar to join Pakistan. They were certain infiltration of Muslims from Mymensingh district of Pakistan into the state. As Cooch Behar was a border State with new formed Muslim dominated East Pakistan, relevance of Hitasadhini Sabha ended and got disbanded in 1950.

On the other hand, the Government of Assam who earlier wanted inclusion of Cooch Behar with Asom was dissatisfied. Asom Jatiya Mahasabha led by Kshatriya leader Ambikagiri Raychaudhuri submitted their protest to the Prime of India, Jawahar Lal Nehru and Home Minister Vallabbhai Patel against the decision of merging Cooch Behar with West Bengal. The Asom Jatiya Mahasabha demanded plebiscite on the issue. Before, widespread agitation brewed up, the West Bengal administration took the initiative to subdue it and took prompt action in merging Cooch Behar with West Bengal.  

 Dr. Bidhan Chandra Roy, then Chief Minister of West Bengal and an influential national ruling party Indian National Congress successfully tried his best to merge Cooch Behar into the fold of his state. Constitution of India was adopted on the 26th November, 1949 by the Constituent Assembly and, same came into force on the 26th January, 1950. Before the Parliament of India started functioning, Part ‘C’ state Cooch Behar was merged with the state of West Bengal as a district on the 1st January 1950 as per provision under Section 290A of Government of India Act, 1935. The constitutionality of the fact that just before the Constitution of India came into force, a Part -C Indian State was merged with another State on the basis of an Act promulgated by the erstwhile British Raj, remains a question even today.

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