Local TV Channels in Darjeeling banned during Gorkhaland movement

In a shocking instance of state government high-handedness, the police seized the local channels in Darjeeling. It is no rocket science - the move has been initiated by the West Bengal government, who are fearful over the growing protests in Darjeeling, about the oldest statehood demand in the country, Gorkhaland. These were the only channels (local) via, which Darjeeling residents could come to know about the happenings of the peaceful Gorkhaland movement.

There are only one or two national news channels covering the movement and that too for a mere time span of 2-3 minutes. Hence, it was these local channels , who were involved in the extensive coverage of Gorkhaland related protests and strike and its effects.

But with the West Bengal government diktat, Darjeeling residents would be even barred from the much required information. It just questions the democratic structure and provides yet another typical example of how the Bengal government has dominated the people in the hills over the years, in the process trying to silence them.

Talking to local reporters, some of the cable owners said that the government was trying its best to stifle voices of dissent. Representatives from the cable companies also said that they would file a case against the infringement of their "Freedom of Expression" as enshrined in the Indian constitution.

Calling this a gross misuse of power, one of the local political leader, Mr. D K Rawat said "the Mamata Banerjee led West Bengal government has lost its moral authority to govern over the people of Darjeeling, Terai and Doars. They think by preventing people from having access to information they will prevail - but perhaps they forgot that is exactly the mistake, the government in Egypt and Libya made - the people shall prevail."

The renewed demand for Gorkhaland is being met with a show of force by the state government and observers are worried that the situation could get out of hand in a very short span. In such a situation, the people from the proposed Gorkhaland region look up to the Central government to restore the law and order to protect their fundamental rights.

But, people in the hills are not going to let such acts hamper their agitation. In fact, such kind of attitude towards the people of Darjeeling would only make the movement a stronger one.

Source: Merinews.com

#Gorkhaland #Gorkhas #Gorkha #Darjeeling #GJMM

Why Darjeeling should not be a part of Bengal

NEW DELHI: Head straight north from Siliguri and you pass through Sukna, a quiet stretch with tea gardens on either side of the road and forests that sometimes see rampaging elephants, before a sharp turn to the left takes you to the hills of Darjeeling. Within half an hour of the drive, everything changes -- the weather, the food, the features of men and women who pass by, and the language they speak.

If Darjeeling has been demanding separation from West Bengal, you cannot fault its people. The two regions have nothing in common - neither history nor geography, neither language nor ethnicity. It should come as no surprise then that the first petition that it be granted the status of a separate administrative unit came more than 100 years ago when in 1907 the Hillmen's Association of Darjeeling submitted a memorandum to the Minto-Morley Commission, making this perhaps one of India's oldest and longest struggles for statehood and identity.

In 1917, another dispatch to the British said: "Darjeeling's inclusion in Bengal was comparatively recent and only because the British were rulers common to both places. Historically, culturally, ethnically, socially, religiously, linguistically there was no affinity whatsoever between Bengal and Darjeeling." It was followed by a plea to the Simon Commission in 1929, to the Constituent Assembly in 1947, and to the visiting chairman of the State Reorganisation Commission in 1955.

The agitation for a homeland of their own gained serious and real momentum when Subhash Ghishing and his GNLF rallied all of the hills with the cry for Gorkhaland in the 1980s. A bloody battle followed in which the state machinery and the paramilitary forces, especially the CRPF, committed untold crimes - arbitrary killings, rapes, trumped up charges for indefinite jail terms, all round human rights violations - that largely went unreported in the mainstream media. More than 1200 people lost their lives.

Though tentative peace, amidst charges of Ghishing selling out his soul, was arrived at in 1988 with the establishment of the semi-autonomous Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council, the mountains remained restive. That didn't go away even when Bimal Gurung, a maverick who broke away from the GNLF and launched a fresh stir and a new party, the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha in 2008, to attain in 2011 the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration, inheriting an old body with a set of what looked like new clothes.

The fact that Gurung rode to power, quite amazingly, on the back of a support campaign for an Indian Idol contestant called Prashant Tamang - who eventually won and now plays lead roles in movies produced in Kathmandu - just went on to show local nationalism was still strong and potent.

When the first batch of Nepalese, or Gorkhas as they prefer to be called these days for political reasons, settled in what is now Darjeeling, there was nobody to record it for history. The British had brought down with guile the fierce warriors and annexed in 1814 the hill tracts. That was almost 200 years ago. The region was formally adopted by England in 1837. By 1866, Darjeeling district as we know today was complete.

Spurred by the successful fight for Telangana, there is unrest again in the hills, a slew of bandhs already shutting down access to one of India's most beautiful travel destinations. And this time there are all indications that the fight will be long and sustained.

#darjeeling #gorkha #gorkhas #gorkhaland #gjmm

Gorkhaland Demand: What is it and why?

The basic point about Gorkhaland is IDENTITY and NOT DEVELOPMENT.

You should be very clear at the outset, that bringing in the talk of DEVELOPMENT in the way of IDENTITY is to DEVIATE from the core issue and to OVERSIMPLIFY and GENERALIZE the issues that the Gorkhas are trying to place before the nation.

Mixing up development and Identity is a conspiracy of the Ruling class to fool the people, resulting in more intensification of existing crisis.We rationalists should not take the faulty logic of the ruling clique and get trapped in rigmaroles.

Nevertheless, development or the lack of it is one reason for people’s rebellion.And most people who do not support the cause of Gorkhaland are now talking about non development in Darjeeling. Is it that all other places are highly developed except for Darjeeling?

But I wonder what development has there been in Kolkata except for adding the lesser used Vidhyasagar Setu to the colonial legacy. What development has there been to other parts of Bengal after the British left?And why is it that there is no demand for a separate state in Birbhum, Purulia, Bakura and Salboni etc., if it was just due to non development?

And that development is not the panacea for identity movements has been proved beyond doubt in Tibet where large scale development by the Chinese could not undermine the peoples’ aspiration for self respect and self esteem.

And the Indian Independence movement was, at least, not due to the lack of development.

Thus it is futile to prove that lack of development in the Gorkhaland area, is the cause of this movement. Proving it is the work of the conventional intellectuals and the cunning politicians.

Therefore, my request to you is that please do not bring in the issue of non development to the cause of identity and unknowingly confuse the whole movement for the emancipation of the Gorkhas.

Let me give you some core issues that the movement has put forward:

1)      Around 1780, the Gorkhas invade Sikkim and capture most part of it which includes Darjeeling with Siliguri. They administer it for 35 years when finally after the British-Nepal war,  Nepal cecedes its territory to the British in the treaty of Segoulee in 1816.

The ceded territory includes Darjeeling, Siliguri, the entire terai, Simla, Nainital, Garwhal hills, Kumaon upto the Sutlej., i.e., the entire region from Teesta to Sutlej.

Again, Darjeeling was handed over by the British to Sikkim but was later taken  back by the former for political reasons in 1835.The CPIM intellectuals and anti Gorkhaland intelligentsia talk only about 1835 but not 1780. I am sure that history does not begin only from 1835. What was prior to that??

2)      Lepchas were nomadic tribes and were engaged in zoom (shifting ) cultivation. They used to hang around the hills from one region to another. Sometimes they were in Nepal and sometimes in Sikkim.

That the Lepchas are the original inhabitants (they of course are, along with other tribes of this region) of this place is based on the account of one Capt. Lloyd, who wrote in his account that there were some 100 Lepcha huts in Darjeeling at the time. It is only that when he visited Darjeeling, those Lepchas just happened to be there. Had he ventured around, he would have surely met some other tribes of the region. It could have been any other tribe; Limbus, Magars, Rais etc who ran around these regions as it was their land. All these tribes belong to the Gorkha community. One thing should be kept in mind that Lloyd was not a trained historian but only a traveler.

These 100 Lepcha huts have now become a buzz word of the CPIM intellectuals to prove that the Gorkhas are foreigners here. They do not want to discuss other historical and anthropological contentions, which go in favor of the Gorkhas.

3)      When the British started tea cultivation in 1865 and the narrow gauge railway line in Darjeeling, a lot of people came here and started residing permanently. One should keep in mind that –

a)  these people did not have the modern concept of international borders,

b) they understood that the land was under the possession of their king and  when they came to work under  British enterprise as laborers ,they thought they were actually following  the orders of the Gorkha King and,

c)  they always understood that they were in their own land.

4)      When these events were happening, India, as we know today, was still not formed and all these people were British subjects, be it a Gorkha or a Bengali.

5)      But after 1947, India entered into an infamous treaty with Nepal in 1950- The Treaty of Peace and Friendship. The Article 7 of this Treaty reads: “The Government of India and Nepal agree to grant on a reciprocal basis to the national of one country in the territory of another the same privileges in the matter of residence, ownership of properties, participation in trade and commerce, movement and other privileges of similar nature”.

This treaty ambiguates the citizenship of the Indian Gorkhas, and it led to the loss of their Indian Identity.  It makes a Gorkha’s Indian citizenship a reciprocal one.

The present Gorkhaland movement is a search and a fight for this lost IDENTITY.

Only a separate STATE can give them this IDENTITY and nothing less.

(You can imagine what will happen to the citizenship of millions of Indian Bengalese if the Govt. of India and the Govt. of Bangladesh enters into such kind of a treaty with Art 7 intact). Rulers do not ask their subjects when they enter into treaties.  

So now it must be very clear that The Gorkhaland Movement is neither a fight against Bengal nor is it hatred against Bengalese. Once the STATE OF GORKHALAND is formed, no other INDIAN can call the GORKHA a FOREIGNER. The IDENTITY of the Gorkhas as Indians will become secured.

Therefore the Agenda of the Gorkhaland movement is only IDENTITY and not DEVELOPMENT.

 In that sense this movement is different from other movements for separate states. Telengana, Vidharb, Bundelkhand etc are a case for DEVELOPMENT, but Gorkhaland is a case for IDENTITY.

                                          #                            #                           #

 However I give you some cases of non development:

#     When the British left there were 180 tea estates in Darjeeling, now only 82 are left including some which are closed.

#      In North Bengal there is presently 18 tea gardens locked -out and in these some 30 thousand workers are jobless.

#      The wage of a labour in Darjeeling Dooars is the lowest in the country.

Tamilnadu                         Rs.101/-,

Kerala                                Rs. 92/-,

Karnataka                          Rs. 92.85/-

Darjeeling- Dooars            Rs.68.70/-

(These are inclusive of fuel and rations of poorest standards).

It is below the minimum wage of Rs.100/- .

#        The Government run Cinchona Plantations which employs thousands of people is on the verge of extinction, there is heavy corruption, and the authorities are conspiring to sell it to Hindustan Lever Group.

#       During the British Rule five to six mail and passengers trains used to go up and down Darjeeling – New Jalpaiguri, and the whole night goods trains used to run in the narrow gauge line. But now there is only one train with 3 compartments that runs between the two stations. 

#       Almost all the ropeways constructed by the British, an easy way of transport and employment, which carried goods to far flung areas are now defunct.

#       Malbazar- Mateley- Dooars was part of Darjeeling Parliamentary constituency, it was cut away and Islampur Chopra with no Gorkha population was attached to this constituency. This was done by B C Roy. His intention was criminal as the Gorkhas could not send an MP on their own, they had to depend on the Bengalese Ruling class’s whims and politics which always was detrimental to the interests of the Gorkhas.

#        Drinking water problem is world famous.

#          Although many departments were given to DGHC, it had no recruitment powers, which led to the unemployment of the educated individuals.  These are now the die-hard participants of the movement.  There was not even a single appointment in the hills in the last 20 years.      

#          Roads are always horrible.

These are some of the things which, I as a rationalist have been able to make some sensible people understand.

By Manoj Giri

[The author, a teacher in Kurseong, is Vice President of Humanists’ Association]

#darjeeling #gorkhaland #gjmm #gorkhas

Source:  Srai

Darjeeling pact wrongly read: GJM - Morcha to meet CM on March 16

Darjeeling, March 14: The Gorkha Janmukti Morcha today accused the state government of wrongly “interpreting” the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration agreement, a day after the chief secretary said there was “no scope” for “considering" the demand to hold election only after the territory issue was settled.

The GTA bill today became a law through a gazette notification.

Morcha general secretary Roshan Giri, who is a signatory to the agreement on behalf of his party, said: “The Bengal government is wrongly interpreting the agreement that only says that the electoral process will run parallel to the high powered committee’s functioning. It does not say that elections would be held. The people will not accept an election without the finalisation of the territory and we will never accept anything that goes against public wishes.”

The other two signatories to the agreement were the Bengal government and the Centre.

The state government has appointed a 10-member committee headed by Justice (retired) Shymal Sen to look into the Morcha demand to bring Gorkha-dominated areas of the Terai and the Dooars under the GTA.

Giri, along with other senior Morcha leaders will meet Mamata Banerjee and the chief secretary in Calcutta on March 16. “We will make our stand clear at the meeting. Elections are out of question without finalising the territory,” said Giri. The Shyamal Sen committee will also meet in Calcutta the same day.

The Morcha wants the GTA election to be held only after the Shyamal Sen committee submits its report to the government. Its tenure has been extended for six months.

“Until then, the election process like delimiting constituencies (the present DGHC has 28 constituencies while the GTA will have 45) can start. But holding election is a different issue altogether. Till the polls are held, an interim board with nominated members should be formed,” said Giri.

Chief secretary Ghosh had yesterday said in Calcutta that there was “no scope” for “considering” the Morcha demand. “The tripartite agreement has been signed (by the Morcha as well). The agreement is exactly reflected in the law that will be notified tomorrow. It clearly states that the election process would be conducted by the state government even if the committee is yet to submit its report on the territorial matter,” Ghosh had said.

“There is no scope now for such considerations. We will go ahead with the elections (in the present DGHC) area,” he had said.

Countering Ghosh’s claim, Giri today said: “Clause 6 of the MoA reads ‘The work of this high-powered committee will run parallel to the electoral process which will be based on the existing delimited area (under the DGHC). However, the empowering statute will have a provision for the transfer of additional areas from Siliguri and the Terai and the Dooars that maybe agreed upon, based on the recommendation of the committee.’ I don’t think this means that election will have to take place parallel to the functioning of the high powered committee. The electoral process can definitely start.”

CPRM fast

The supporters of the Communist Party of Revolutionary Marxists will be on a 12-hour hunger strike in front of the Jantar Mantar in Delhi on March 20 in demand of Gorkhaland.

“We will also submit a memorandum to the Prime Minister's Office on March 20,” said Shekar Chhetri, chief of the CPRM’s youth wing.

Source: The Telegraph

GJM threatens to renew Gorkhaland demand in the Darjeeling Hills

Tempers are again rising in the hills of West Bengal, with the pro-Gorkhaland Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) threatening to renew its agitation for a separate state if a proposed hill body was not formed by March 27.

"We will burn the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA) treaty if it is not formed by the deadline. We will renew our agitation for Gorkhaland from April 27," GJM president Bimal Gurung said.
Gurung, who had set the March 27 deadline for the GTA's birth, said the treaty would be burnt at a meeting in Sukna, about 20 km from Siliguri in Darjeeling district.

On July 18 last year, a tripartite agreement was signed between the GJM and the state and central governments for setting up a new autonomous, elected GTA, a hill council armed with more powers than its predecessor Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council (DGHC).

As per the accord, an expert committee was set up for the purpose of the survey of the Gorkha-dominated parts of Siliguri, Terai (plains of Darjeeling) and Dooars (foothills of the eastern Himalyas) to examine if areas from these places can be brought under the GTA.

The committee, headed by retired justice Shyamal Sen, was expected to give its report in six months but sought and got a six-month extension late last month.

The GJM central committee has expressed anguish over the developments. GJM general secretary Roshan Giri met Governor MK Narayanan on Tuesday and requested him to ensure that the GTA was formed soon.

The governor, now on a visit to Darjeeling, assured Giri that he would take up the matter with President Pratibha Patil, whose assent is required for the The Gorkhaland Territorial Administration Bill 2011 passed by the state assembly in December.

"I can assure you that the state government is committed to form the GTA," the governor told Giri.

Expressing anguish over the delay in the Shyamal Sen committee completing its survey of fresh areas to be brought under the GTA, GJM assistant general secretary Jyoti Rai said the condition in the hills will worsen if the panel did not complete its job soon.

Meanwhile, five anti-GJM parties in the hills - the Akhil Bharatiya Gorkha League, Communist Party of Revolutionary Marxists, Gorkha National Liberation Front (C.K. Pradhan), Gorkhaland Rashtriya Nirman Morcha and the Bharatiya Gorkha Parisang - have formed a Gorkhaland Task Force.

The elders of these parties have accused the GJM of betraying the cause of Gorkhaland and getting besotted with the GTA.

Chhatre Subba, chief of the Gorkhaland Liberation Organisation, has expressed his readiness to lead the Gorkhaland agitation if the "people so desire".

"I am prepared to give leadership to the people if they so desire. And if anybody obstructs me, he will get a befitting answer from the people."

On the other hand, the Gorkha National Liberation Front (GNLF), which had led the agitation for two decades till it was sidelined by the GJM, is also preparing for a meeting to be addressed by party chief Subash Ghising in Mirik Feb 26.

Ghising had been the uncrowned king of Darjeeling since the 1980s but was forced to leave the hills July 26, 2008 by the GJM.

He returned before last year's assembly polls, but fled in the cover of the night soon after the polls.

The three picturesque Darjeeling hill subdivisions of Darjeeling, Kurseong and Kalimpong have been on the boil for nearly three decades due to anti-government protests over the demand for a separate state.

The hills had witnessed killings, police crackdowns and long shutdowns which severely impacted the region's economic mainstays of tea, timber and tourism.

Things have improved since the signing of the GTA, with calm and peace restored and tourists flooding the hills.

Source: Hindustan Times

Gorkhaland Territorial Administration delay spurs campaign race in Darjeeling hills

Darjeeling: The rivals of the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha have geared up their revival activities as prospects of the government implementing the new administrative arrangement for the hills by March 27 seem dim.

The deadline was set by Morcha chief Bimal Gurung but with the territory issue yet to be sorted out, chances of the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA) coming into force by next month is almost impossible.

Under the circumstances, the GNLF has decided to hold a public meeting in Mirik on February 26 to garner support for the Sixth Schedule status for the hills. Party president Subash Ghisingh will be present at the meeting — to be his first public address after the Assembly elections. He had attended a public meeting before the elections.

The Gorkhaland Task Force, a conglomerate of five outfits opposed to the Morcha, has revved up a campaign for statehood. The GTF members — the ABGL, CPRM, GNLF(C), Gorkhaland Rashtriya Nirman Morcha and the Bharatiya Gorkha Parisang — are currently meeting MPs and MLAs in the Northeast, seeking support for the formation of a separate state, an activity that has been bothering Morcha chief Bimal Gurung.

He had come down heavily on the GTF yesterday in Kalimpong, accusing its members of being in touch with the Maoists. He also said his rivals were opposing the GTA only for the sake of opposing it.

Arjun Rai, the convener of the GNLF’s Mirik unit, today said: “We have decided to hold a public meeting in Mirik on February 26 and our party president Subash Ghisingh is expected to be present. He will announce the party’s future course of action in support of the implementation of the Sixth Schedule status in the hills.”

Ghisingh, who had been hounded out of the hills by the Morcha in 2008, returned on April 8, 2011. The very next day, he headed for Mirik to attend an election meeting — the only public meeting he had addressed — to drum up support for the three party candidates.

Following clashes between Morcha and GNLF supporters at Sonada after the election results were announced, Ghisingh had quietly slipped out of the hills under the cover of darkness on May 16, 2011.

A section of GNLF supporters, however, feels that Ghisingh who now stays in Jalpaiguri may come to reside permanently in the hills when he comes up to address the public meeting.

On the other hand, in the GTF camp, a team met P.A. Sangma, the NCP leader and former Speaker of the Lok Sabha at his residence at Tura in Meghalaya yesterday.

Chhatrey Subba, the chief of the Gorkha Liberation Organisation, also appears to have plans to revive his political activities after nearly 10 years. Gurung has been wary of the 71-year-old Gorkha leader, who is known to be against any form of autonomy, even the GTA, and is a staunch supporter of Gorkhaland.

The Morcha has threatened to re-launch the agitation for statehood if the government fails to implement the GTA by March 27.

Morcha general secretary Roshan Giri said his party was not worried about the GNLF demand for the Sixth Schedule status for the hills.

He said governor M.K. Narayanan has assured the party of all possible help for the early implementation of the GTA. “The governor has promised to speak to the President during their scheduled meeting on February 15,” said Giri, who met Narayanan at the Darjeeling Raj Bhavan this evening. The GTA Bill is awaiting the President’s approval.

Sibchu meeting

The Morcha will hold a prayer meeting at Sibchu tomorrow after a 12-km run from Nagrakata, reports our Jalpaiguri correspondent. Party members will pay tribute to Morcha supporters “who laid down their lives” for Gorkhaland at the meeting.

The rebel faction of the Akhil Bharatiya Adivasi Vikas Parishad led by John Barla will also participate in the meeting.

The Jalpaiguri district administration has granted permission to the Morcha to hold the run. But police are unaware of the public meeting to be addressed by Gurung.

“The police will be deployed along NH31 from Chulsa to Nagrakata and we have granted them permission for the run. But we have no information about the public meeting. We have appealed to everyone to maintain peace,” said Arindam Sarkar, the subdivisional police officer of Malbazar.

Source: The Telegraph

GLO leader Chattrey Subba: Do not try to mortgage Gorkhaland

GANGTOK: February 3, 2012: Within month of the formation of the much hailed Gorkhaland Territorial Administration, talks of reviving the demand for a free Gorkhaland have started cropping up yet again. In the most recent development 71-year-old former Gorkhaland Liberation Organization (GLO) chief Chhatrey Subba has said, “I spent 11 years in Jalpaiguri Jail for the cause of the identity for the Gorkhas, and I am always ready for it.” The GLO president Chattrey Subba said in an interaction with a local daily on February 2, at Kalimpong.

 Chattrey Subba, for his staunch support for a separate state, had fallen out with Ghisingh after the latter signed the accord to establish the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council (DGHC) in 1988. Subba opposed the accord which came after a 28- month agitation for a Gorkhaland state. The people felt cheated that after such a long struggle, the end result came to a naught. Subba went on to form the GLO and used militant tactics to continue the Gorkhaland struggle in the 80s. Later he was arrested in 2001 in connection with a murder attempt on Subash Ghisingh, the Gorkha National Liberation Front (GNLF) leader. Subba was released from the Jalpaiguri correctional home last year on February 10, 2011.

Subba said to this daily, “Ghising sold the desire of Gorkha community in 1988 as he was lured by money.”

Expressing his displeasure with the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) led Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA), Subba said, “It is because of identity crises that Gorkha are still facing problems. Gorkhaland is a hundred year old demand and it must reach its culimination,” said Subba.

Subba vowed, “I will start a fresh movement under my own banner. I am not interested in the unification between Darjeeling and Sikkim and want salvation from the clutches of West Bengal”, however, “We hope a great deal of support from Sikkim for Gorkhaland.”

Subba warned the all the Darjeeling Hill parties not to give false hope and suggestions on the issue of Gorkhaland. The communities are in a position to sacrifice their life for the cause and the leaders should lead them in the right direction. He asserted, “Do not try to mortgage the native (Gorkha) land.”

People are still confused about Gorkhaland. It is but on the part of they themselves to choose the right leaders, said Subba. However, Subba called he praised GJM chief Bimal Gurung Subba as sincere, honest, and soil lover who is misguided by people around him.

Source: iSikkim

GJM reiterates March 27 deadline for GTA

Reiterating the March 27 deadline, the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) on Wednesday proclaimed that if the government fails to form the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA) within the above date, the GJM would launch an agitation for a separate state of Gorkhaland. West Bengal Governor will be arriving in Darjeeling on February 6.

A GJM Central committee meeting on Wednesday resolved that the GJM would be resurrecting the Gorkhaland agitation if the Government fails to meet the March 27, 2012, deadline. “We will hold a massive rally in Sukna near Siliguri on April 17 from where we will announce the political programmes for Gorkhaland” stated Jyoti Rai, GJM Central Committee member.

The GJM has also decided to observe February 8 as “Black Day” throughout the Hills. On this day in 2011, three GJM supporters had died in police firing at Sibchu bordering Dooars while agitating. West Bengal Governor MK Narayanan will be in Darjeeling on February 6, 7 and 8th. In Darjeeling the Governor is scheduled to attend a Himalayan Mountaineering Institute (HMI) programme on 7th and visit Chongtong Tea Garden on the February 8. On the same day he will be leaving for the plains.

Political observers however feel that the Governor’s sudden winter visit to the Darjeeling Hills could be in connection with the GTA. In Darjeeling he would definitely study the political environment and hold parleys with the GJM which could revolve around the GTA issue, opined political observers.

Since October 2007, the Darjeeling Hills have been a witness to a separate state agitation led by the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM.) Several rounds of tripartite talks between the Centre, State and the GJM finally paved way for the signing of a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) on July 18, 2011, between the Centre, State and the GJM  for the formation of an autonomous body named the GTA.

The MOA led to the passing of the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration Bill 2011 in the West Bengal Assembly on September 2, 2011. However with the territory issue (area to be incorporated in the GTA) remaining a bone of contention, the GTA has not seen the light of day yet.

Along with the three hill subdivision of the Darjeeling district namely Darjeeling, Kalimpong and Kurseong, the GJM has demanded the inclusion of 199 “Gorkha dominated” mouzas of Terai and another 199 mouzas of Dooars of the Jalpaiguri district in the GTA.

A joint committee has been formed constituting of members representing the Union, State and the GJM to look into the territory issue. After the expiry of the 6 month term of the committee on January 27, 2012, the Government has further extended the term by another 6 months.

Source: Hindustan Times

Rebel Gorkha leader Chattrey Subba criticizes GTA

Darjeeling: Seventy one years old Chattrey Subba is considering taking sannyas from politics. However the rebel did not fail to criticize the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA- an administrative arrangement for the Darjeeling Hills) and pitched for the separate state of Gorkhaland. It was a day of mixed emotions at the Subba household at Raushey Bazar in Kalimpong on Saturday, the day after Chattrey's release from the correctional home after 10 long years. While the family celebrated his return; bail being denied to his son Santosh Subba in a different case, cast a long shadow on the revelry. Subba had been arrested on March 24, 2001 in connection with the Subash Ghising assassination bid case. He was finally acquitted on September 9, 2011. Gorkha National Liberation Front (GNLF) leader Subash Ghising, then the Chairman of the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council (DGHC) had been attacked at Saath-ghoomti under the Kurseong sub division, on his way back from Delhi. Two police drivers died in the attack along with a suspected attacker. Six others were injured. “Whosoever raises the demand for Gorkhaland is either murdered as in the case of Madan Tamang or sent behind bars like me. Even the GTA deal has been clinched over Madan Tamang’s dead body. Blackmailing over the murder forced a compromise” alleged Subba. “I believe that only Gorkhaland can resolve the crisis of the Gorkhas. I do not have faith in anything less. Because I opposed the DGHC earlier Ghising along with the government conspired and sent me behind bars. The attack on Ghising was orchestrated by Ghising and the government to put me behind bars. While in the Correctional Home the government had offered me a high power Council which I could head. However I did not accept their proposal hence I was forced to languish in jail. They even tried to kill me” alleged Subba. He stated that while he was in the correctional home in 2003 he had a severe heart ailment and was shifted from the Jalpaiguri Correctional Home to a medical facility in Kolkata. “There they had kept me under heavy security without giving me a single medicine for my cardiac ailment. But seeing that I did not die they were forced to send me back to the correctional home in Jalpaiguri. Subba used to head the militant wing of the Gorkha National Liberation Front (GNLF) during the violent agitation of the 80’s led by Subash Ghising. He however had parted ways with Ghising over the formation of the DGHC in 1988. He had floated a new outfit Gorkha Liberation Organisation (GLO) Subba had vehemently opposed the DGHC and had given a call for the continuation of the separate state agitation. “Councils and similar administrative bodies delay the main goal of separate State. It also does not fulfill the political identity issue not accords a political security to the Gorkhas. Only a separate state than ensure this” stated Subba. When questioned on his future plans, Subba stated “My family members want me to retire from politics and I am planning to do so.” More than 10 years behind bars seemed to have dampened the rebel spirit. Regarding his son Santosh Subba being arrested in the Kalimpong blast incident, Subba stated “If he is guilty he should be punished. If not they should not keep him behind bars like they did to me for 10 years after which they acquitted me. I have lost precious years of my life” On July 26, 2011, the Kalimpong motor stand was rocked by a low intensity blast at around 3am in the morning with a stove allegedly planted below a North Bengal State Transport Corporation (NBSTC) bus having exploded. Santosh was arrested in connection with this case on July 31. “I am happy that my husband is back home after 10 long years but I am also sad that my son is behind bars though he is innocent like his father” stated Monika Subba, wife of Chattrey Subba. Source: Hindustan Times

24 hr Relay hunger strike of GJM started from 29 January

Indefinite relay hunger strike for 24 hr was started in all the three hill districts and Dooars. On the first day of the hunger strike 7 members of Parvatiya Apanga Kalyan Sangathan participated. In other areas members of different frontal wings of GJM participated. In Shibsu of Nagarkatta Dooars located near Khumani, local GJM supporters participated in relay hunger strike. IG of North Bengal Police prohibited GJYM members to assemble there and dismantled the other camps of GJYM though the hunger strike is continuing.

Tension prevailed in Khumani where police force had shifted the barricade about 50 mt towards Darjeeling district. Later the police agreed to shift the barricade to Jalpaiguri area from tomorrow. Hundreds of GJM supporters gathered in the spot protested against the police. Additional force is deputed in Khumani. Everyday 50 supporters from each unit is deputed at Khumani to demonstrate near the police barricade. Youths from other areas are also swarming in the camps of GJM at Khumani. Police halted the traffic in NH31C near Bagrakote Mina more for about 2 hr and checked vehicle to stop the GJYM supporters heading towards Dooars from hills. Traffic in NH 31A was also halted by GJM Teesta Unit for about 3 hr when the news of Bagrakote reached the Highway.

Source: Kalimpong News

GJM suspends bandh till February 7

Two days after the meeting between its representatives and Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram in New Delhi, the Gorkha Janamukti Morcha (GJM) leadership that had earlier threatened a 15-day bandh in Darjeeling district from January 29, decided on Thursday to suspend its programme till February 7.

“We have suspended the third phase of the bandh that was to have been resumed [as part of its call for a 26-day bandh] on Saturday, but will continue with our plans for a padayatra to the Dooars”, GJM central committee leader Harka Bahadur Chettri told The Hindu over telephone from Kumani in the Kalimpong sub-division of Darjeeling district.

While the GJM leaders had, following their meeting with Mr. Chidambaram on January 25, expressed their satisfaction with the outcome of the talks, the decision to suspend and not withdraw its bandh call is being construed as a ploy to put pressure on the Centre to come up by the first week of February with a draft for the proposal of an interim arrangement to replace the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council.

Dr. Chettri, who was in the GJM delegation that met the Union Home Minister, had said shortly after, that his colleagues were hopeful that the draft of the proposal for the interim set-up would be ready for perusal by the first week of February. They had also been reportedly assured that it would not compromise their demand for a separate Gorkhaland State.

Future of stir discussed

The future of the GJM's agitation to put pressure on the Centre to clarify its position on the separate State issue was discussed at a meeting at Kumani of the party's central committee in the presence of GJM president Bimal Gurung. A report on the talks with Mr. Chidambaram was also placed at the meeting.

While the GJM leadership awaits the draft proposal for the interim arrangement, it chose to go ahead with its padayatra to Jaigaon in the Dooars, even if that means breaking through barricades set up by the police.

The Jalpaiguri district authorities had imposed prohibitory orders in certain areas of the Dooars to prevent the GJM leaders from walking into the region in view of the tense situation prevailing there following clashes in Jaigaon on January 16 between supporters of the GJM and those of regional outfits opposed to the Statehood demand.

Volunteers of the GJM will be going on a relay hunger-strike at places across Darjeeling district and parts of the Dooars during the days the bandh remains suspended, to maintain pressure on the Centre for a clarification of its stand on the Gorkhaland demand.

The Hindu

PC meets GJM leaders

NEW DELHI: Amid indications that the proposed interim authority for Gorkhas may not be in place before the state assembly elections, GJM leaders on Tuesday met Union home minister P Chidambaram and are learnt to have pitched for setting up the regional authority at the earliest.

"We had a detailed discussion on our demand with the home minister. The meeting was held in a cordial atmosphere and was very positive," GJM general secretary Roshan Giri later said.

Giri refused to divulge what transpired, but said the Centre should clear its stand on his party's demand. BJP leader and Darjeeling MP Jaswant Singh was also part of the delegation.

Source: Indiatimes

MP advice: A step at a time for state - Jaswant says Delhi proposal is 75 % of ultimate goal achieved

Jaswant Singh believes that the interim authority for the Darjeeling hills proposed by the Centre and the state is more than half the battle won towards achieving statehood.

However, he skirted contentious issues like the territory of the proposed new body or the inclusion of other parties in the talks with the Centre and the state government.

Arriving in Bagdogra this afternoon, en route to Darjeeling, just a week before the next round of tripartite talks, the BJP MP from Darjeeling said: “An interim arrangement for the Darjeeling hills is, I believe, one step forward towards meeting the demand for a separate state. The journey to get that (statehood) is a stiff task and the setting up of an interim arrangement is achieving 75 per cent of the ultimate goal.”

Earlier, too, in what appeared to be a clear message to the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha, Singh had said achieving statehood was a “step by step” process and each stage had to be conquered before reaching the summit.

Singh had told the Telegraph in May this year: “Nothing can be achieved at one go, get the (authority) in your hand, administer the area and then after that build on it.” Today also Singh gave the same advice, and once again underlined the need for patience for achieving that “ultimate goal”.

“Mount Everest cannot be scaled with a single jump,” Singh told the media at Bagdogra airport. “During the creation of a new state, there will be stops and pauses.”

The “stops and pauses” that Singh referred to is evident as several contentious issues regarding the set-up is yet to be thrashed out.

In the next round of tripartite talks at the official level scheduled for September 7, the participants are expected to work on issues like the territory of the proposed set-up, its tenure and its composition. Also to be thrashed out are issues like the jurisdiction of the district magistrate and the superintendent of police, and elections to the panchayats.

During his visit to Darjeeling, Singh is expected to discuss with the Morcha leadership the strategy to be adopted for the talks as well as the latest political situation in the hills.

Singh, however, appeared optimistic about the coming talks. “Even Sitaram Yechury, a senior CPM leader, during his recent visit to Darjeeling had said the present problems of the hills can be solved only through more autonomy and the people of the hills should welcome the interim set-up,” Singh said. “This reflects the position of the state government as well.”

Reacting to Singh’s views, Morcha general secretary Roshan Giri said: “Negotiations are on, but there are many issues involved in setting up this interim arrangement.” Asked whether his visit would remain confined to the hills, Singh said this time he would also visit Siliguri since it was part of his constituency. “I will definitely visit Siliguri and interact with the people there.”

Source: The Telegraph

Morcha plans to shut out Parishad - Hill outfit alleges state hand in Adivasi demand

Darjeeling, April 13: The Gorkha Janmukti Morcha today indicated that it would abandon its efforts to woo the Akhil Bharatiya Adivasi Vikas Parishad to agree to its demand to include the Terai and parts of the Dooars in the interim authority for the Darjeeling hills.

In the past, the Morcha and the Parishad leaderships had few meetings to arrive at a consensus on this issue. However, the Parishad had always said that while it has no objections to the creation of Gorkhaland, it did not want Dooars to be a part of it.

But with the Morcha insisting that the Nepali-dominated areas of the Dooars should be part of the interim authority, the Parishad had placed a rider yesterday. It said that tribals should also be made part of the talks that has been taking place between the Centre, the state and the hill party.

The Morcha today responded by challenging the locus standi of the Parishad for speaking on behalf of all tribals.

Morcha spokesperson Harka Bahadur Chhetri told The Telegraph: “We no longer think that the Parishad is the sole body representing the rights of the tribals in the Terai and the Dooars. This is largely because a large number of people from the tribal community are now with the Morcha in those areas. Who has given them (the Parishad) the authority to speak on behalf of all tribals in the Dooars?” Chhetri even went one step ahead and hinted at a collusion between the Parishad and the state government.

“It is clear that the Left- minded tribal leaders involved with the Parishad are now being controlled by the state government and they are trying to derail our efforts to reach an agreement for an interim set- up. The state is aware that it has much to lose and is now using these tribal leaders who were formerly with the CPM and the RSP to achieve their goal,” said Chhetri.

This marks a break from the previous Morcha stand of appeasing the Parishad leadership and arriving at a consensus.

Even on March 15 this year, the day Morcha chief Bimal Gurung made public his “secret document” for an interim set up, a delegation of the hill party that included Chhetri had held a meeting with the Parishad leaders and had tried hard to press upon them the benefits that the tribals would enjoy if they were part of the interim set-up.

Asked whether the Morcha would oppose the demand for the inclusion of the tribals in the talks, Chhetri said: “Any such call has to be made after holding a central committee meeting. This decision also lies with the Union government. However, the Morcha has been very logical in the demand for inclusion of areas in the Dooars in the interim set-up. We have redrawn the map to ensure that we leave out areas where there is 100 per cent opposition to the inclusion within the proposed set-up. We are not illogical and have demanded only those areas where people, including the tribals, have supported the interim set-up.”

Earlier, the Morcha had demanded that the entire Dooars be included in the area it wanted as Gorkhaland. However, Gurung made a climbdown when in the “secret proposal” he revealed that the Gorkhaland map had been redrawn to include only those parts of the Dooars where there is a significant Gorkha population.

After the submission of the document, the Morcha had made it clear that it would no longer compromise on the revised territory.

Chhetri said: “The Parishad must understand that we also have support in the Dooars which has been proved by the fact that we won the Kalchini Assembly byelections.”

Source: The Telegraph

Morcha returns without promise

The Gorkha Janmukti Morcha today failed to wangle any assurance from Union home minister P. Chidambaram on its demand for the inclusion of Siliguri, the Terai and parts of the Dooars in the interim authority being planned to replace the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council.

Home ministry officials said at the 10-minute meeting in Delhi between a four-member Morcha team led by its president Bimal Gurung and P. Chidambaram, the home minister heard the Morcha demands but refused to make any commitment or give an assurance that he would consider them.

Instead, home ministry sources said, Chidambaram told the Morcha leaders to talk to the Bengal government. “The home minister’s plate was too full today and he had a packed schedule,” an official said. “The meeting was too brief to discuss anything meaningfully.”

But the known stand of the Centre, as has been evident in the tripartite talks at the bureaucratic and political levels, is that it is opposed to the inclusion of the areas that the Morcha is demanding.

However, after the meeting, the Morcha claimed that the home minister had expressed his willingness to consider its demand for additional territory if the Bengal government agreed to it. “The home minister sounded very sympathetic towards our demand… and maintained that the Centre had no major objection to increasing the interim authority’s jurisdiction,” Amar Lama, a Morcha central committee member who attended the meeting, told The Telegraph.

Lama claimed that Chidambaram had also told them the Centre would speak to both the Bengal government and the Trinamul Congress on the issue. A senior home ministry official dismissed such claims. “The Morcha leaders can claim whatever they want to,” the official said. “Our line has been consistent: no additional territory.”

The official said the Centre had promised “sufficient” development funds for the interim authority and more executive powers, but not more territory.

Source: The Telegraph

Friday scheduled for talks between GJMM and Chidambaram

Darjeeling, April 7: A Gorkha Janmukti Morcha delegation led by Bimal Gurung will meet Union home minister P. Chidambaram in New Delhi on Friday.

Although the Union home ministry as well as the Morcha has confirmed that the talks will be held on April 9, Bengal home secretary Ardhendu Sen said today he had no idea about Gurung’s meeting with Chidambaram.

The first direct talks between the Morcha president and the Union home minister will take place at a time when nobody is willing to concede an inch of the territory that is to come under the interim set-up proposed for the hills.

While the Morcha wants the entire Darjeeling district and parts of the Dooars, the Centre is adamant that the interim arrangement should be confined to the hills.

A Morcha source said apart from the party president, a group of four to five senior leaders would be in the delegation. The meeting is likely to primarily revolve on the territory the Morcha wants to be included in the interim set-up. The Morcha is adamant on the inclusion of all areas, where the Nepali speaking people are in majority in the Dooars, and Siliguri in Darjeeling district.

The party has already made a climbdown and has left out areas where the community is in a minority in the plains in a proposal it had sent in March.

“The party will not make any further concession as far as the territory is concerned,” said a party leader.

A senior official who is in the know of things told The Telegraph that the central and state governments had no intention of parting with the Dooars and Siliguri. “As the elections to the Bengal Assembly are just one year away, both the Centre and the state are in no mood to incorporate the Dooars and Siliguri in the new set-up,” added the official.

Given the stand of the governments and the hill party, the issue of territorial jurisdiction may become a stumbling block in coming to a settlement on the new arrangement.

“There are compulsions for the governments and the Morcha. None will budge. If one party blinks, the arrangement could see the light of day but this looks unlikely at the moment,” said an observer.

Against this backdrop, the meeting between Gurung and Chidambaram has gained much significance. The Morcha chief had skipped all the five tripartite meetings in the past.

The sources said the meeting between the two had been in the pipeline soon after the fifth round of talks on March 18. “Everyone is aware that the issue cannot be sorted out without a direct dialogue between the government and Bimal Gurung,” said the official.

The interlocutor, Lt Gen. (retd) Vijay Madan, is also likely to visit Calcutta and Darjeeling after the Friday meeting in Delhi.

Source: The Telegraph

Home ministry meet discusses GJM's proposal on authority's territory

NEW DELHI: A meeting convened by the Union home ministry on Monday discussed the issue of territorial boundary of the proposed Darjeeling Regional Authority and took note of the revised proposal given by the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha, which is spearheading the campaign for a separate Gorkhaland.

The meeting among GJM, West Bengal government and home ministry officials discussed the list of subjects given by the Morcha for inclusion in the proposed autonomous body. However, no decision was taken on them and another round of meeting would be held next month to discuss the issue further.

"We hope something positive will come out in the next round of meeting," an official said.

The GJM has also asked for adequate and uninterrupted funds to the proposed authority so that development activities can be carried out without any hindrance. The second political level tripartite meeting on the Gorkhaland issue will be held in mid-May.

Source: Times of India

The last surviving legend of the Naxalite trio embraces death

Naxalbari, March 23: Kanu Sanyal, one of the founding leaders of the Naxalite movement in the country and the all-India secretary of the CPI(M-L), committed suicide at his house in a Naxalbari village this afternoon.

Sanyal’s body was found hanging from the rafters of his mud hut at Hatighisa village, 20km from Siliguri, by Santi Debnath, the wife of party worker Kesab Debnath who had gone to check on the veteran CPI(M-L) leader around 1.15pm.

Police said Sanyal, 78, a bachelor who was ailing, was suffering from depression.

“My daughter Jaya, who cooks for him, had served him chapatis and vegetables in the morning and rice, dal and egg curry around noon for lunch. He retired after lunch, reading the newspapers and Jaya returned home. I went to check on him later but did not find him on the mattress on the floor. I saw him hanging from the ceiling. I raised the alarm immediately,” Santi said.

She said ever since Sanyal suffered a stroke in 2008, she used to call on him every day and her son-in-law stayed with him at night.

Hearing the news of Sanyal’s death, neighbours and hundreds of people from around the area thronged his Hatighisa home. Leaders of other Naxalite factions and those belonging to the CPM, Congress and the Trinamul Congress also arrived at the spot.

“Of late, he was sounding very depressed. He was frustrated with the current communist movements in the country and used to say that both the Maoists and the CPM had deviated from their ideology. After his stroke, he had become feeble and could not move out to address meetings and rallies,” said Dipu Haldar, a district committee member of the CPI(M-L).

Haldar said though the Naxalite movement of the late sixties had witnessed killings, especially in the urban areas, Sanyal would always say that he was against the “wanton killings of innocent villagers” that the Maoists had been indulging in.

Around 3.30pm, Sanyal’s body was taken to North Bengal Medical College and Hospital for post-mortem. Cries of Kanu Sanyal Amar Rahe rent the air and tribal men and women broke down as the ambulance drove off.

Jogen Biswakarma, the Darjeeling district secretary of the CPI(M-L), said Sanyal’s body would be kept at his home tonight as Naxalite leaders from Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Orissa and Jharkhand were expected here tomorrow to pay their last respects.

Sanyal was born in 1932 in Kurseong and quit the CPM in 1967 to form the CPI(M-L) along with other leaders like Charu Majumdar. He practically led the May 1967 peasant’s insurrection by declaring the “liberation” of Naxalbari village — after which the movement came to be known.

Before that, Sanyal had worked as a revenue clerk at the Kalimpong and Siliguri courts.

Sanyal was arrested in 1970 and spent about seven years in various jails in Bengal and in Andhra Pradesh. Jyoti Basu personally saw to it that Sanyal was released when the Left Front came to power in Bengal in 1977.

Since then Sanyal, though maintaining a relatively low profile, had been campaigning for the rights of farmers and the tea garden workers in north Bengal by denouncing his original ideology of armed struggle.

Sanyal, in recent years, had been vocal in opposing land acquisition in Singur and Nandigram and was also in favour of Gorkhaland.

The CPM has condoled Sanyal’s death. Politburo member Sitaram Yechury said for the past two years Sanyal had become critical of the Maoists.

“His death is very unfortunate. He had been saying that the line adopted by the Maoists did not conform to the revolutionary understanding at the time when he started the Naxalite movement. Sanyal had actively participated in all major agitations of the CPM and other Left parties in Bengal against neo-imperialism,” Yechury said.

Source: The Telegraph

Interim authority for Darjeeling?

The Centre on Thursday favoured setting up an ' authority' for Darjeeling and neighboring areas with certain powers over development matters to the agitating Gorkhas who have been demanding a separate Gorkhaland state.

This came during the first round of political talks with the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) which presented a blueprint of an interim regional authority.

The talks were attended by minister of state for home Ajay Maken, GJM general secretary Roshan Giri, Trinamool Congress leader Dinesh Trivedi, interlocutor Lt General Vijay Madan besides state government represenatives.

"The Centre is in favour of setting up an interim authority for the area after consulting all stakeholders including state government as it wants development activities to resume there. Adequate funds will be given by the Centre for this purpose", said Maken.

Giri came up with the blueprint of the "interim authority" having powers similar to a state. Though the Centre did not fully agree with the GJM's draft, officials here expressed the hope that some common ground could be found during the next round of talks scheduled for mid-May.

The Centre, despite its reservations, is hopeful of considering some of the demands put forth by the Morcha.

According to the plan mooted by GJM, the regional authority should have no interference from West Bengal government. It should have powers on law and order and have a body like a state assembly.

The regional authority may be named either Gorkhaland Regional Authority or the Darjeeling and Dooars Regional Authority, the sources said.

Times of India

DARJEELING News: ‘Morcha has sold the issue of Gorkhaland’ Madan Tamang

Addressing a press conference at Siliguri, All India Gorkha League President Madan Tamang has alleged that Gorkha Janmukti Morcha leadership has sold the issue of Gorkhaland in favour of an Interim Council. Tamang said, “What does Gorkhaland has anything to do with the Legislative Assembly Election to be held in Bengal in 2011? Why is GJM seeking an Interim Council until then? The GJM leadership including its President Bimal Gurung, General Secretary Roshan Giri, Central Committee leaders Anmol Prasad, Amar Lama and Dr. Harka Bahadru Chettri have sold the dreams of Gorkhaland. The party had agreed on an alterative setup in August last year. The party was to sign on an agreement with the Govenrment during the Fourth Tripartite Meeting. However, this was not possible due to the opposition of the people. The arrest of the Ajay Dahal, the leader of UGRF (United Gorkha Revolutinary Front), the continuous imprisonment of Chattrey Subba, the dismay of Sikkimese Chief Minister Dr. Pawan Chamling with the GJM party leaders and the deployment of CRPF in the hills all point to the fact that the GJM has been sabotaging the movement for Gorkhaland and making grounds for the Interim Council. In fact, when the deployment of CRPF was not possible, the party used its holigans to burn the police station at Sukna to create a law and order situation and pave the way for the deployment of the CRPF in the hills. The party has demanded 600 Crores of Rupees for Interim Council. The Government has accepted to offer 300 Crores. Now the people will no longer accept this. The leaders of GJM are liers and anti-Gorkhas.”

Lashing out at the GJM President Bimal Gurung, Tamang said, “Bimal Gurung had said that he would shot himself on the brow if Gorkhaland was not achieved by March 10 2010. If he is truly dedicated to Gorkhaland, let him shoot himself on the said day. If Bimal Gurung persists on lying and cheating the people, his fate will be worse than that of Subash Ghisingh.”