MY GORKHALAND: 4/6/08

Saturday, April 12, 2008

9 ex-servicemen go ‘missing’ following clashes

DARJEELING, April 11: The Bharatiya Gorkha Bhutpurva Sainik Morcha (BGBSM), which brought out a rally backed by the Gorkha Jan Mukti Morcha in Si-liguri on Wednesday today alleged that nine of its supporters went missing after the rally turned violent following a clash with the police. The ex-servicemen’s organisation also alleged that the CPI-M might have a hand in the disappearance of the supporters.“Nine people have gone missing and we doubt that the CPI-M has an involvement in the disappearance,” alleged Capt (Retd) SP Pradhan, spokesperson of the BGBSM. He also said that 27 people were injured in the violence out of which 5 were serious.The Association has lodged an FIR at the Pradhannagar police station and has also forwarded a memorandum to all authorities concerned including the chief minister, Prime Mi-nister, Union Home M-inister and Defence Minister requesting them to take stringent action against the perpetrators of the violence. “The authorities should take immediate action or they will have to bear the consequences of the delay,” said Mr Pradhan. He declared that the ex-servicemen would not hesitate to surrender their medals if the situation demands so.Labelling Wednesday’s incident as a conspiracy of the CPI-M led West Bengal government; the BGBSM spokesperson said: “The West Bengal government was trying to defame their democratic movement and provoking them to take up arms. We demand a CBI inquiry into the whole incident,” he said adding that the CPI-M had adopted the same strategy in Nandigram. (The statesman News service)

GJMM blocks NH-31

SILIGURI, April 11: Spearheading the renewed movement for a separate state of Gorkhaland, the Gorkha Jan Mukti Morcha is gradually spreading the agitation to the Dooars, which is part of the party’s proposed territory for the demanded state. As a tactical move to strengthen the claim for the Dooars, the GJMM has asked its followers in the area to carry out agitations in the Darjeeling Hills. Complying with the party resolution, the GJ-MM activists today blocked the National Highway 31 at Madarihat and Damdim, between 8 am and 1 pm. The blockade was called to oppose the alleged atrocities on an All Gorkha Ex-Servicemen Morcha (AGESM) rall-y in Siliguri on Wedn-es-day. The AGESM is an affiliated body of the GJMM. This is, however, not the first occasion when the Morcha has organised political agitation in the Dooars region. Its followers in the area had in observed a token hunger strike in support of the statehood call demanding inclusion of Dooars in its territory in February.As a matter of priority, the GJMM central leadership is eyeing to woo the tea planters, who are an overwhelming majority in the Dooars. The Hill party is trying its best to convince the black tribes in tea plantations that their interests and socio-cultural identity would be safeguarded if the region was included in the proposed Gorkhala-nd state. “Siliguri and the Dooars are an integral part of the territory demanded by us for Gork-haland. To win over the confidence of the tea planters in the Dooars, we are seeking the support of the community’s political outfits based in Jharkhand,” the GJMM general secretary, Mr Roshan Giri said. Mr Giri, along with another GJMM central committee member was in Ranchi recently and took part in a public gathering organised by the All Jharkhand Stud-ents’ Union-Party (AJSU)-Party. “On behalf of the Hill people I have appealed to the people of Jharkhand to support the demand for Gorkhaland. We have also invited the AJSU-Party to come to the Dooars and share the platform with us to garner the support of the tea planters’ community,” the GJMM general secretary said. (Statesman News Service )

Friday, April 11, 2008

U- TURN IN THE GORKHALAND MOVEMENT

Today's paper quoted Bimal Gurung saying that he is at the verge of using the last weapon for the movement. The movement in the hills shows that it is taking a new turn. The movement has shifted from hills to the plains. As per the action plan there is plan for footmarch from Hills to Kolkata by 10001 GJMM cadres. Bimal is asking students to get ready even if they have to sacrifice one year of their studies. Women wing is going to block Rajesh Padey from entering Darjeeling. KPP and greater Coochbehar supremos are supporting Gurung.

Involvement of students is a good step the leadership has thought about. The student movement in all over the workld has been seen as a success approach. The student movement of Bihar, student movement of Nepal are the recent success stories seen around the district. But the gap is still been seen that all the political parties of the hills are not united till date. CPM has started showing the same nature as it had shown in the 80's movement. GJMM is still after lambasting Ghisingh, which looks an approach of GJMM to keep its hold in the hills. But one thing is very clear that the hill will not be suffering as far as transportation, economic, market, tourism is concerned as these facilities will be opened even if there will be bandhs etc. From the progress seen in the hills it looks that Bhattacharya will have sleepless nights as he will be the first shock absorver.

More details of the stories in the below attached Nepali paper.