Delhi team fishes for sympathisers-Morcha keeps eye on developments at the Centre, hunts for statehood allies

Darjeeling, June 26: The Gorkha Janmukti Morcha’s delegation in Delhi is trying to find sympathisers for the Gorkhaland demand with an eye on the possibility of a change of power at the Centre.
Morcha general secretary Roshan Giri, who had been heading the four-member delegation, said: “We met (BJP chief) Rajnath Singh, yesterday and (Opposition leader) L.K. Advani the day before. The leaders are sympathetic to our demand and have asked us to go back to them with relevant documents justifying our demands. The outcome has been positive.”
Giri had to return to Darjeeling today for personal reasons, but the three other members of the delegation — Pradeep Pradhan, Harka Bahadur Chhetri and Phubi Rai — are expected to stay on for a couple of more days to try and meet a few other politicians. “The delegation will definitely try and meet (UPA chairperson) Sonia Gandhi in the coming days,” said Giri.
Sources maintain that the Morcha is aware of the fact that the UPA and the Left Front are unlikely to support the statehood demand, especially at a time when the nuclear imbroglio is yet to subside. The hill party is keenly following the developments in Delhi and is pinning its hopes on an early parliamentary election, the sources said.
“This government is surviving because of the Left support and our demands will definitely be met with hostility (by the government). However, the silver lining is the fact that the Centre is not averse to calling a tripartite meeting as of now,” said a Morcha leader.
There is a strong feeling among the Morcha leaders that the party would be on an advantage if it aligns with the BJP rather then the Congress. “The important leaders of the Congress are against division of Bengal. This cannot be said of the BJP, who are in favour of smaller states,” said another Morcha leader. He referred to the three new states — Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and Uttarakhand — that were created during BJP rule at the Centre.
If the Morcha aligns with the BJP, it will be a break from the past as the hills have traditionally voted for the Congress. The Subash Ghisingh-led GNLF had even helped the CPM win the Darjeeling Lok Sabha seat twice in the nineties by staying away from the parliamentary elections.(The Telegraph)

Workers’ unrest to hit hills

Darjeeling, June 26: The 8,000 ad-hoc workers of the DGHC will start a fast-unto-death in town from Saturday to demand immediate regularisation of their jobs.
Permanent government employees in the hills, on the other hand, will go on a mass casual leave tomorrow.
“We have heard that the government is mulling a move to shift government offices from Darjeeling to Siliguri and have decided to go on mass casual leave tomorrow as a mark of protest,” said B.P. Chhetri, vice-president of the Hill Employees’ Association.
The decision, which has been taken together with the Hill Employees Workers Trade Union, will disrupt all offices in Darjeeling.
The ad-hoc workers’ demand is a long-standing one and they have been on a relay hunger strike since June 7.
“Our relay hunger strike in front of the Lal Kothi (the administrative headquarters of the DGHC) will end tomorrow. We will hold a massive rally in town after that and from Saturday we will start the fast-unto-death,” said Machendra Subba, the president of the Janmukti Astai Karmachari Sangatan — an affiliate of the Morcha.
A seven-member team will sit for the indefinite hunger strike, said Subba.
The 8,000 workers are currently employed on six-month contracts and although DGHC officials had earlier promised that they would be regularised, there is still no word from the Bengal government.
The term of the current six-month contracts will end soon. Sources said the regularisation process would take at least a month to be completed, largely because the council is overstaffed.
The DGHC officials had also said that before the regularisation process begins, the workers would be given new contracts that will not be time-bound. Although no official could be contacted, sources said the council had forwarded the new terms to the state government on June 20.
“If we get to hear something positive from the state government by tomorrow evening, we will call off the fast-unto-death. It all depends on the state government’s response now,” said Subba.
The contract workers get paid between Rs 2,000 and Rs 3,500 a month. Sources maintain that the state government has agreed in principle to do away with the six-month contract system and increase the salaries of these workers until the regularisation process is completed.
A final word from the state government is expected to come after the Morcha delegation meets chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee in Calcutta tomorrow. (The Telegraph)

Teachers ask, kids volunteer for fast

Darjeeling, June 26: Seven Class IX boys started a relay hunger strike here today and hundreds of schoolchildren brought out rallies across the Darjeeling hills even as the Gorkha Janmukti Vidyarthi Morcha tried to justify the role of students in the movement for a separate state.
All seven are from Municipal Boys’ High School and will be on fast till 11am tomorrow when the next batch takes over. They reiterated what the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha has been harping for some time.
“If we get Gorkhaland, our future will be better. The situation in Bengal is hopeless,” said 16-year-old Laxman Prasad in front of the district magistrate’s office where the fast is going on.
The protesters, all within the 16-19 age group, considered themselves “lucky” for having been selected for the agitation.
“Our teachers asked us who all wanted to take part in the hunger strike. Quite a lot of us volunteered. We were selected for the first batch and another group from our school has been chosen for another day. I am lucky to have got a chance to fast for Gorkhaland,” said Prasad.
Students from different schools will take turns in groups of seven to participate in the relay hunger strike in Darjeeling till July 5 as announced by Bimal Gurung, the president of the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha. Simultaneous fasts will also be held in Kalimpong, Kurseong and Mirik.
The students claimed that they had the support of their parents. “My mother who depends on my father’s pension supported my decision. I am part of the hunger strike because this is a question of my identity too,” said 16-year-old Prasit Rai, who comes from Badamtang tea garden, 15km from Darjeeling town.
The Vidyarthi Morcha, which is spearheading the agitation, justified the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha’s decision to involve the students in the hunger strike. “The Gorkhaland we are talking about is for these children. They must be aware of the demand. Fruits given on a platter does not have much charm. All agitation, including the country’s freedom movement, has seen active involvement of students,” said Keshav Raj Pokhrel, secretary of the Vidyarthi Morcha.
Pokhrel also cited the example of the All Jharkhand Students’ Union in creating Jharkhand.(The Telegraph)

Safety first (Editorial on Gorkhaland Issue)

Mr Subhas Ghisingh was no angel. Apart from promoting corruption and maladministration, he kept the pot boiling by raising irrelevant and untenable issues dug out from obscure crevices of history, perhaps with a view to hogging the limelight and creating problems for the state and the Centre. Eventually, being frustrated in their attempt to regain influence through subversion and subterfuges in the hills, the Marxists started courting Mr Ghisingh. But the honeymoon was destined to be a bitter one.For quite some time, the state government has been saying that as a final solution to the Darjeeling problem the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council (DGHC) will be elevated to the status of an autonomous council under the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution. However, neither the state government nor the Gorkha National Liberation Front chief has cared to share with the people exactly how they will do this without amending the Constitution on at least two counts. First, amendment is necessary for application of the Sixth Schedule outside the North-east, and second, since the Sixth Schedule can be applied only in a tribal area, an amendment is necessary for its application in a non-tribal area like Darjeeling.However the CPI-M and Mr Ghisingh jointly found a solution to the second problem. The size of Darjeeling’s tribal population should be so increased that the region may be marked as a tribal region. For this purpose, the more numerous Tamang and Limbu communities among the Nepalis of Darjeeling should be marked as Scheduled Tribes (STs), ignoring norms laid down for determining Scheduled Tribe status. Mr Ghisingh being a Tamang, has overnight become member of an ST.This, in fact, was a fraud perpetrated on the Constitution since they conspiratorially decided to change the anthropological character of a region for political expediency. The CPI-M, as a partner of the UPA government, inveigled the weak-kneed Centre not only to agree to this manipulation but also to accept the recommendation of the state government and issue a formal notification giving these two communities ST status. This will facilitate the declaration of Darjeeling as a tribal region, dispensing with the need for a second amendment to the Constitution.But unfortunately the calculations went awry. When this change became public, the hill communities were angry and Mr Ghisingh started losing his social status and popularity as a leader in the hills. The Sixth Schedule status was no coveted thing with the people as it meant a demotion down the social ladder. Mr Ghisingh and state government leaders while calculating political gains could not gauge the social reaction to such fraudulent conversion and were swept off their feet by the tornado of protest. The hills are on fire once again.The upsurge is now spearheaded by the Gorkha Jan Mukti Morcha, a hastily organised outfit led by Mr Bimal Gurung, a long-time Ghisingh loyalist and a former muscleman of the Gorkha Volunteer Cell. During 1987-88, he was pitted against the most terrible muscleman of the CPI-M in the hills and proved his mettle to his boss, Mr Ghisingh. After the DGHC came to power in the hills, Mr Gurung spent a short stint in prison and came out only to ask for a seat in the council. Mr Ghisingh did not oblige him. Some years later when Mr Rudra Pradhan, a council member was murdered, Mr Gurung wanted to contest the seat, but this time too he was denied.He contested as an Independent candidate and won.Mr Gurung shot into prominence in 2007, mobilising support for Prashant Tamang in the ‘Indian Idol’ contest. Tamang won it, making Mr Gurung popular in the hills vis-à-vis Mr Ghisingh, who had been reluctant to canvass support for Mr Tamang. About this time, it came to be known that the Tamangs and Limbus had been recognised as STs. Mr Ghisingh’s popularity has nosedived since then.It will be naïve to think that Mr Gurung’s demand for Gorkhaland is merely a strident rejection of the proposed Sixth Schedule status for Darjeeling because such a status is associated with a social stigma. It is also an expression of disapproval of the DGHC and the politics associated with it. The options available to the Indian state for containing the movement have, therefore, become limited. Mr Gurung’s perceived Gorkhaland state is coterminous with Mr Ghising’s Gorkhaland, a map of which was circulated at the peak of the movement. Mr Gurung took out a procession from Darjeeling to the border of Assam through the Dooars with a view to notionally establishing his claim to the territory, which he wants to incorporate in Gorkhaland. It is not known whether by design or due to indiscretion he wanted to garner support in areas where his hold is marginal by making it clear that those areas would be included in a possible Gorkhaland. Such moves are sure to create racial tension.When emotion and sentiment get the better of a people, it is futile to argue on the basis of the facts of history. As a matter of fact, history often is deliberately distorted to generate strong emotions. So it is of no consequence to say that the present Siliguri subdivision, described in 18th and 19th century history as “the territory between Mechi and Teesta rivers” and also as “terra incognita” was under “Sikkimpati Raja” and was never under Nepal and that the present Darjeeling and Kurseong sub-divisions were under the nominal control of Nepal for a short time between 1790 to 1814. Or to say that when Darjeeling was bought from “Sikkimpati Raja” by the British in 1835, there was hardly any Nepalese population in the hills. While the facts of history have little relevance in an emotive ethnic movement, the present ground reality should not be ignored in determining the ethnic character of a piece of territory, lest such indifference and ignorance lead to undesirable consequences.According to census figures, in the Dooars region, from Mal/Metelli to Kalchini/Kumargram, Gorkhas constitute on an average 25-28 per cent of the total population. In Siliguri subdivision, the percentage is much less. These facts of history can be ignored only at the cost of plunging the region into greater turmoil. But for the actors in this game these are perhaps not essential and compelling arguments for maintaining communal and racial harmony, which have been greatly strained as a result of the recent upsurge.More important, because the security of this thin piece of land is linked with the security of the nation as a whole, we perhaps cannot afford to further slacken the administrative hold on the region by fragmenting and splintering it and thereby making it vulnerable to frequent internal disorder and infiltration from unfriendly countries. All political settlements in this region have to take care of the interests of national security.

‘A Black Day’ for protestors

Statesman News ServiceSILIGURI, June 26: Protesting against the proposed negotiation between the state government and the Gorkha Jan Mukti Morcha in Kolkata tomorrow, the Jana Chetana, an apolitical organisation known for its strident opposition to the Gorkhaland demand, announced its plans to observe tomorrow as ‘Black Flag Day.’ “We would oppose such talks until the crucial question of nationality of those spearheading the Gorkhaland agitation is resolved once and for all,” Mr Debaprasad Kar, the President of the outfit said. Meanwhile, Aamra Bangali, another radical organisation opposing the Gorkhaland demand, has urged the state government to form a Bengali Regiment in an obvious reaction to the recently formed Gorkhaland Personnel in the Hills. Casting aspersions on the continuing round of negotiations the state has been having with the GJMM leadership, the Jana Chetana president said, “It amounts to putting the cart before the horse. At the outset, a screening operation must begin in earnest to differentiate the genuine Indian Nepalis from the migrants from the neighbouring country. As for the demand for Gorkhaland only true Indian Nepalis can cry for it."Dwelling upon the Indo-Nepal treaty, 1950, Mr Kar said that the Nepali nationals, who had settled in India prior to the signing of the treaty, had been endowed with citizenship rights including political franchise. “But for those who migrated after the treaty was signed, they could participate in the process of economic and industrial development sans the political franchise as per the treaty,” Mr Kar said.“Now the crucial question is - are the GJMM leaders migrants or genuine citizens of the country? That has to be decided before any meaningful parley can take place over the outfit's territorial demand,” the Jana Chetana leader asserted.The Aamra Bangali on the other hand today revived the Bengal Regiment formation demand. Mr Sambhu Sutradhar, the organisation's Siliguri secretary said that the state government must seriously consider the demand. “Otherwise the organisation would go for an agitation keeping in view the interest of the Bengalis in this fluid situation,” the Aamra Bangali leader, said. He also demanded the transfer of all administrative offices in Darjeeling to Siliguri in view of the volatile political scenario in the Hills.

Hill people back 'non-violent' movement for Gorkhaland

Darjeeling (PTI): The indefinite bandh called by the Gorkha Janamukti Morcha (GJM) has hit the people of the Darjeeling hills hard, but they nonetheless swear by GJM chief Bimal Gurung, who has expressed willingness to achieve Gorkhaland following the path of Mahatma Gandhi.
Chandra Bahadur Rai, an octogenarian who lost his only son in the Gorkha National Liberation Front (GNLF) movement, said he could trust Bimal Gurung because "he has achieved two things - defused the 6th Schedule bomb and ousted Subhas Ghising."
"Only Gorkhaland remains to be achieved. But at the same time, we don't want anymore bloodshed. Gurung has adopted the path of non-violence which is why people support him.
"If Mahatma could achieve freedom for the country, why can't we get a separate state through a peaceful movement?," he asked.
Tendu Sherpa, who runs a business venture in Sikkim, said autonomy provided by the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council could not achieve much.
"Darjeeling has more resources than Sikkim, but there is a world of difference in the standard of living. We have to attain Gorkhaland since the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council could not do much in past two decades," he said.
Traders like 25-year-old Anju Lama, who runs a LPG spare parts sales and service centre, are even ready to run into losses if it means greater good. "My elder brother was scarred for life after being hit by a stone thrown by a cadre during a GNF rally. We can suffer business loss but we don't want anymore violence," she said.
According to official sources, 266 persons, including 20 securitymen and 80 CPI(M) supporters were killed and 1,085 persons injured between August 1986 and July 1988 during the GNLF movement.
In comparison, during the seven months of the agitation by the GJM there has been no loss of life. (Hindu)

No separate state for Gorkhas: Buddha

Kolkata: Though West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee has said that there would be no precondition for talks with the Gorkha Janamukti Morcha, the state government, a day before a crucial meeting with the GJM, today ruled out discussion on its separate statehood demand.
"There will be no discussion with the Morcha on the statehood demand, but talks can be held on administrative re-arrangements and greater autonomy (for the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council)," Chief Secretary A K Deb told newsmen.
The chief minister after an all-party meeting on June 17 had said, "In my (earlier) letter to the GJM for talks, we had not set any precondition. We still do not have any precondition." GJM President Bimal Gurung, when asked to react, told PTI from Darjjeeling that the party delegation in Kolkata would not seek a discussion on Gorkhaland, but stress on a tripartite meeting to resolve the Darjeeling issue.
"I have instructed the GJM delegation to stick to a one-point agenda to urge Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee to take the initiative for tripartite talks," Gurung said.
"The GJM demand covering Darjeeling district and the contiguous area of Dooars would be taken up at the tripartite meeting," he said.
"We have only one aim, that is Gorkhaland. We are not interested in talks for more administrative powers for the hill council, or development of the hills," he said.
The GJM chief said the meeting with the chief minister was a 'courtesy call' and statehood talks could only take place in the Centre's presence.
The GJM delegation's talks in Delhi with Union Home minister Shivraj Patil had been 'positive', he said.
Asked if the indefinite bandh in the hills, which has been relaxed till July five, would be relaxed further, Gurung said "If there is positive indication then we will think over it." The indefinite bandh was called by GJM on June 16 but a 60-hour relaxation was given to the people from 6:00 pm of June 22, which was further extended till July 5.
Meanwhile, school students sat on relay hunger-strike in various parts of Darjeeling district to press for Gorkhaland.
Students from standard nine and above in batches of seven launched hunger-strikes from 10:00 am in front of the district magistrate's office in Darjeeling, before the sub-divisional officer's office at Kurseong, at Trikone in Kalimpong and in front of block development officer's office at Mirik, superintendent of police Rahul Srivastav said.
"We are keeping a watch over the situation and handling it carefully as it is an emotional issue," he said.
GJM press secretary Benoy Tamang told PTI that at least 20 batches of students were on hunger-strike at many places, including at Nepanea bustee in the plains area of Siliguri in the district. (sify)

WB Govt ready for more autonomy, GJM says no

Kolkata, June 26: On the eve of the crucial meeting with the Gorkha Janamukti Morcha (GJM) in Kolkata, the West Bengal government on Thursday ruled out any discussion with it on its separate statehood demand.
"There will be no discussion with the Morcha on the statehood demand, but talks can be held on administrative arrangements and greater autonomy (for Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council)," Chief Secretary A K Deb told reporters at Writers' Buildings.
Deb said in the absence of Morcha President Bimal Gurung, Chief Minister Buddhadev Bhattacharjee would talk to any GJM representative.
The chief secretary said, "Stateheood demand cannot be accepted. Instead, we can discuss, if GJM wants, administrative rearrangements and even extending greater autonomy (to the DGHC). Everything depends on what they want."
The chief secretary's assertion of not accepting the demand for a separate Gorkhaland in the talks, is being construed as a pre-condition for talks with the GJM.
Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee a few days ago had said that the state government was ready for talks with the GJM without precondition.
GJM not interested in more autonomy
The Gorkha Janamukti Morcha on Thursday said it would not budge from its demand for Gorkhaland and would not accept accept the West Bengal government's offer of discussion on development and more autonomy for the Darjeeling hills.
"I have instructed the GJM delegation in Kolkata to stick to a one-point agenda to urge Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee to take the initiative for tripartite talks," GJM President Bimal Gurung said from Darjeeling.
His comments came shortly after Chief Secretary Amit Kiran Deb said that that there would be no discussion with the GJM on its statehood demand and greater autonomy and administrative rearrangements for the Darjeeling hills could be discussed.
The GJM delegation, Gurung said, would only stress on a tripartite meeting and would not seek a discussion on Gorkhaland.
"The GJM demand covering Darjeeling district and the contiguous area of Dooars would be taken up at the tripartite meeting," he said.
"We have only one aim, that is Gorkhaland. We are not interested in talks for more administrative powers for the hill council, or development of the hills," he said.

WB govt rules out discussion on statehood demand with GJM

Kolkata, Jun 26 (PTI) On the eve of the crucial meeting with the Gorkha Janamukti Morcha (GJM) here, the West Bengal government today ruled out any discussion with it on its separate statehood demand."There will be no discussion with the Morcha on the statehood demand, but talks can be held on administrative arrangements and greater autonomy (for Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council)," Chief Secretary A K Deb told reporters at Writers' Buildings.Deb said in the absence of Morcha President Bimal Gurung, Chief Minister Buddhadev Bhattacharjee would talk to any GJM representative. PTI

School students on relay hunger strike

Siliguri (PTI): The non-violence movement started by the Gorkha Janamukti Morcha (GJM) for a separate Gorkhaland got a boost on Thursday when school students started relay hunger strikes in various parts of Darjeeling district.
Students from Class IX and above launched relay hunger strikes in batches of seven from 10 am in front of the offices of district magistrate, sub-divisional officer's office at Kurseong and in front of the office of block development officer at Mirik, Superintendent of Police Rahul Srivastab said.
"We are keeping a watch over the situation and handling it carefully as it is an emotional issue," he said.
GJM press secretary Benoy Tamang told PTI that at least 20 batches of students were on hunger strike at many places, including at Nepanea bustee in the plains of Siliguri in the district.
On the GJM's decision to affix vehicle number plates with GJ prefix from July, Srivastab said the police had sent an exhaustive report on it to the authorities and was awaiting instructions. (The Hindu)

Gorkhaland:Hunger strike by High school children: Isn't it a violation of UN convention on child rights

I was talking with a teacher friend of mine from Darjeeling to know about the declared hunger strike by students. He confirmed that children under the age of 18 yrs are also sitting in hunger strike. This strike is going on in all the major towns of darjeeling Hills at Darjeeling, Kurseong, Kalimpong and Mirik.
This is a violation of UN convention on Child rights . The political leaders can in no form use the children to fulfill their aspirations. This is deliberate and intentional. I urge the United Nations and Government of India to interfere in this matter and stop Bimal Gurung and Gorkha Janmukti Morcha in continuing this act.
Why civil society is silent in this matter? Why parents are mumb? Why women groups are encouraging this?

Why Gorkhaland? From Darjeeling Gupshup

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Almost everyone from Darjeeling District and parts of Dooars Terai irrespective of their caste, race, and linguistic difference are demanding Gorkhaland because: Gorkhaland is our birth right, guaranteed by the Constitution of India. People from Darjeeling have always been a victim of social, political and economical experiences under various administrations levied upon them. People of Darjeeling feel that it’s the ripe time that the people of Darjeeling should be given the right of self determination under the Constitution of India. Majority of Indians does not recognize the people of Darjeeling as Indians just because the people of Darjeeling speak Nepali language. Historically Darjeeling belonged to Sikkim. Darjeeling was gifted to East India Company by Sikkim and then it’s Passover to the British Crown and the Indian Republic. The people of Darjeeling Hills and Dooars Terai have combined and fully assimilated into mainstream India, they feel the need to be recognized as India’s own. Gorkhalis feel that as a constituent fabric of the Indian Union like the Bengalese, Tamils, Punjabis, they can as Gorkhas from Gorkhaland serve Indian Union to their fullest capacity. Politically Darjeeling Hills and Dooars Terai is the epi-centre of Gorkhas. However, Gorkhas make up a sizeable population in Bhagsu, Himachal Pradesh, Assam, Nagaland, Mizoram, Manipur and other parts of India. For Gorkhas, Darjeeling has always been a homeland of choice. Thus the formation of Gorkhaland would signify recognition and legitimacy and most importantly acceptance in India as a whole, no matter where they reside. Since Sikkim is a separate state for Sikkimese, the Gorkhas also want their own state Gorkhaland of their own as they feel overshadowed under in a state called West Bengal. The Gorkhas has different culture compared to the culture of West Bengal. Economically Darjeeling Hills and Dooars Terai has never received economic aid proportion to the resources, potential and revenue garnered or could be garnered in the region. West Bengal has never found itself interested in helping the Hills and Dooars Terai to rise up to its optimum potential. Darjeeling Hill with its abundant resources, including world favorite Darjeeling Tea and Tourism never got noticed by West Bengal Government and the Central Government. Gorkhalis have always been victim of identity crisis more so because of the existence of the Republic of Nepal with whom India shares a porous border. The lack of the need of visa while traveling through and fro the two nations have also lead to belief in most of the Indian circles that Nepalese wander in India freely and hence giving a second thought that Gorkhali people must be from Nepal. This leads to major complications for Nepali speaking people that are originally from India and not from Nepal. In fact, this vision has found root not just among commoners and the lays but also the highest of leaders in India. In the 1970s when the then Prime Minister of India, Morarji Desai visited Darjeeling, he was submitted a petition by a delegation of the Bharatiya Nepali Bhasa Manyata Samiti (Indian Nepali Language Recognition Committee). The Prime Minister went through the petition and remarked rather care-freely, “I think you should be offering this petition to your King?” While the delegation lay dazed the Prime Minister further remarked, “Don’t you have a country of your own?” Yes, he was referring to Nepal and to His Late Majesty Mahendra Bir Bikram Shah Dev. And yes, there was and is a country called Nepal but surely, it never occurred to the Prime Minister that he was not talking to Nepalese Delegation from Nepal but to the Citizens of India. Identity is thus a very big issue! There have been news and various newspapers carried out numerous reports of Nepali speaking Indians being not given access to the most basic of amenities such as issue of ration cards, voters identity cards etc in the rest of the nation just because they were Nepali speaking Indians. Certainly, Gorkhaland would solve a lot of problems. (Darjeeling Forum)

IS GORKHALAND REALLY FEASIBLE: FROM DIFFERENT SOURCES

The topic of Gorkhaland is at high. At the ground the women groups are busy from morning till evening shouting slogans for the Gorkhaland. The online sites are also updated every hour on the topic. here I have tried to capture some of the thoughts expressed in different online sites:
From Orkut (http://www.orkut.co.in/CommMsgs.aspx?cmm=666287&tid=5213902362513634499&na=1&nst=1)
Is Gorkhaland practically feasible?
I am a Bengali. Although I am not against the idea of Gorkhaland I still have some doubts. If you take the Darjeeling district as a sperate state then it will be the smallest state in India in terms of population:-I give below the statistics of some of the small states in India in terms of population :-Goa 1,400,000Nagaland 1,988,636Manipur 2,388,634Mizaoram 888,573Tripura 3,191,168Sikkim 540,493Pondicherry 9,73,829What is the population of darjeeling District in terms of population ?107,530 (according to 2001 census). Out of which at least 30% is Non-Nepalese...Do you really think it is feasible?

Goa 1,400,000Nagaland 1,988,636Manipur 2,388,634Mizaoram 888,573Tripura 3,191,168Sikkim 540,493Pondicherry 9,73,829These are small but economically better performing states in India, as compared to, say, Bihar, Jharkhand, Orisa or even Haryana in some aspects. So the size does have its arguments in favour of Gorkhaland, which will eventually comprise of not just darjeeling, but also its adjoining areas of Siliguri and Dooars.Europe is another example where small states have faired better on socio-economic parameters.

Ok.. Starting with population... the figure you have quoted here 1, 07, 191 (census 2001) is only for the Darjeeling Municipality area which covers 10.70 Sq. Kms in and around Darjeeling town and not for the Proposed Gorkhaland state.... This population is 100% Gorkhali as we do not discriminate between different communities... everyone in Gorkhaland will be a Gorkhali with no discrimination what so ever.... Don't take my word for it you can ask any of the non-Gorkhalis in Darjeeling and Kurseong and Kalimpong and see what they feel... The expected population of the proposed area is going to be around 8, 50,000, which will have an even distribution of 30% Bengali's, 35% Gorkhalis, 30% Rajbanshis and other ethnic tribes and 5% rest... This will allow for every one to live harmoniously and equally without any group dominating the other.Next comes the real issue of economic sustenance... please rest assured that we will be a revenue surplus state... just a few quick considerations....All the hydro-electric generation units in North-Bengal are in the proposed Gorkhaland area.. which will make us a power surplus state and we will generate revenues by selling this power to states like WB, Bihar and Orissa....The tea industry which contributes half of WB revenue currently will belong to the proposed Gorkhaland state, which will be used to revitalize the currently dis-functional gardens, thus ensuring more employment and earnings. Darjeeling tea has been accorded Geographical Indicator (GI) status at par with Champagne and Cognac by the WTO, as a result of which the price for Darjeeling Tea has climbed geometrically, however, the benefits are yet to reach the masses, which will be the priority for the Government of Gorkhaland. The proposed state of Gorkhaland is the richest source of natural resources, which includes both in situ and ex situ uses. You must be aware that the Eastern Himalayan region falls under IUCN bio-diversity hot spot, thus making it the most attractive for tourists and conservationists world over.... Th Government of Gorkhaland will invest heavily on developing sustainable tourism facilities, the focus will be on Eco-tourism and Nature based tourism.Herb and horticultures will be promoted extensively and the Government of Gorkhaland will make certain selected areas in Chalsa, Damdim, Dalshingpara, Mangpoo, Kalimpong, Nagarkatta etc the herbal and horticultural capital of India (and over the years South-Asia).The main focus of the Government of Gorkhaland will be to develop human resources in such a way that the state does not has to rely on outsiders for running the economy. The state of Gorkhaland will be equal employer and will provide Universal Health care and education free of cost for the state citizens.Educational institutes will be funded and encouraged to attract students from all over India and the world. So that the glory of Darjeeling as the Oxford of The East is established. Every state citizen will be taught in English, Bengali, Nepali, Kamptapuri (which will be recognized as one of the state languages and reccommended to be included as a national language) and other languages, which the student will be free to choose from.All the cultures, heritage and traditions will be protected and preserved, under the Ministry for Culture and Languages, Government of Gorkhaland. Special funds will be allocated to preserve tribes like Lepchas and Totos.
The Government of Gorkhaland will set up advance learning centers and scholarships so that our students will be able to access the best education world over. If required special reservations for Totos and Lepchas (and any other such tribes) will be put in place.The government of Gorkhaland will develop sustainably without harming the environment, every care will be taken to protect the environment and the livelihood of the people.The government of Gorkhaland will not allow MNCs to develop any project or plan without agreeing to employ 80% state citizen, this will be done to protect the economic well being of the state citizens.The government of Gorkhaland will develop and maintain medicinal plants facilities, the government will further support any individual, firm or organization to undertake medicinal plant related operation. Which will then be exported to firms in and outside India.The Government of Gorkhaland will set up cold storage across the state to promote proper stocking of food products, food processing plants will be set up and the policy of free and fair trade will be employed to compensate the people involved.Local handicrafts and hand loom products will me marketed internationally, every individual thus employed will be paid a FAIR PRICE for their effortsIn Gorkhaland no discrimination will be entertained what so ever and violators will be severely punished. Outsiders will be welcome to lend a hand in the development process, however, they will not be given residential status unless the Government of India does so after due processing (the terms for which will be laid out in the State Act). This will be done to ensure the protection of local residents and to check illegal immigration (from other states and other south-Asian countries)
This is just a basic idea for our economic sustainability, if you need more details please feel free to contact, shortly an economic model for the state of Gorkhaland will be prepared for which contributions from all quarters of India will be sough, if you have any comments or criticisms you will be welcome to do so.
$@nde&h r@i
well evry1 seems to hav different view.......bt wat i do feel is dat statehood is d only means to show our existence in India......even today people do ask whre u frm?? if we say we r frm West Bengal, they consider us as bengali.....nw please dnt get me wrng out here....m not against bengali coz i do hav bengali frens n m much closer to them......India is a Democratic country n is made up of different cultures but thre lies 1 fact dat evrythng happens on community basis.......I hav stayed in a hostel whre u can find people frm different states n even out thre, groupism can b seen.......its d mindset of d people n it has to b changed first......if dis happens i dnt think so thre ll b any need to hav a new state.......i guess in future thre should b only 1 community called Indian community......
Major
Dear Saugata and Sanjay... Thanks for input and your concern.... Saugata.... so you think it's only the Gorkhalis?? Do you know that Kamptapur Peoples Party (KPP) is supporting and actively taking part in the Gorkhaland movement??? Do you know that it's not only the Gorkhalis but also Bengalis.. Muslims.. Marwaris who are demanding Gorkhaland??? probably not.. because the media in North-Bengal is absolutely controlled by CPI(M) and whenever there was an attack on GJM supporters which did include Bengalis... Kamptapuris... Muslims... the press always called it a clash between GJM and locals.... instead of saying a clash between GJM and CPI(M).... Even though this movement is very open and inclusive.. the CPI(M) and it's frontal organizations like Amra Bangali, BBBBC etc have been trying to paint it with ethnic color... However, more and more people are supporting the movement... I agree we need to work more towards generating support from other communities as well... and I am sure people like YOU and SANJAY can be of big help.Sanjay... see the points that you have made are very valid and that's the reason why we are demanding Gorkhaland... nothing is allowed to flourish in WB and we will never be able to develop Darjeeling, Terai and Duars unless we are free from WB and CPI(M) hegemony.... Don't worry about the money, as I said before we have more than enough resources to sustain and make our's a revenue surplus state withing 3-5 years.... and guess what Siliguri being the trade hub will be benefiting the most...Support Gorkhaland for a Better Future

༒Azad (गुर्खा)༒
Creation of new states, earlier along ethnic and linguistic lines and later along economic and political lines in india is fairly a recent phenomenon, more so after independence. Prior to independence british had divided india into major blocks/provinces and princely states for administrative purposes.Several new states and union territories have been created out of existing states since 1956.Bombay State was split into the linguistic states of Gujarat and Maharashtra on 1 May 1960 by the Bombay Reorganisation Act. The Punjab Reorganisation Act of 1966 divided the Punjab along linguistic and religious lines, creating a new Hindu and Hindi-speaking state of Haryana, transferring the northern districts of Punjab to Himachal Pradesh, and designating Chandigarh, the shared capital of Punjab and Haryana, a union territory. Nagaland was made a state in 1962, Meghalaya and Himachal Pradesh in 1971, Tripura and Manipur in 1972. Arunachal Pradesh was made a union territory in 1972. The Kingdom of Sikkim joined the Indian Union as a state in 1975. Mizoram was made a state in 1986, Goa and Arunachal Pradesh in 1987,while Goa's northern exclaves of Daman and Diu became a separate union territory. In 2000 three new states were created; Jharkhand was created out of the southern districts of Bihar, Chhattisgarh was created out of eastern Madhya Pradesh, and Uttaranchal, since renamed Uttarakhand, was created out of the Hilly regions of northwest Uttar Pradesh. The Union Territories of Delhi and Pondicherry ( remamed to Puducherry )have since been given the right to elect their own legislatures, and have acquired full statehood.

DEVIL getting
im absoutly...agree with angzee....im from delhi....too...and i support gorkhaland with all my heart and want this dream to come true...even though im a resident of delhi...but my hometown is darjeeling......im not much into all that satctic things....but i know one thing....argueing wat will happen if we get or not....or wat will be the economical status...of drajeeling after being gorkhaland.......thats not the queation right now...cos the main agenda is we want gorkhaland cos we want a better life so that oue brother ans sisters don't have to go...far away from...thr hometown...and get exploited in other states,,,just cos of thr appereance.......if talking abt finacially...then i think ...nebdy in this community don't have to worry...cos once....gorkhaland is acheived....then thr r enough people gorkhali here in india and darjeeling...and all around the world......to...help.. mr. sanjay and..mr saugata...with all do respect y u both r concentrating on population....of gorkhalis in darjeeling only..i know ur correct with ur statics or can be wrong....but ...it is the reason....for low population cos of the situation and the poverty that people had to suffer....if gorkhaland is acheived ...they all come back to thr land for...better and i guess.....u both frds will b ready with ur stats to count how many gorkhalis r thr now....ok........wat abt the gorkalis living out of the state...., abroad....have u tried to count them.....thr were more gorkhalis then this in india when Damber singh gurung ....represented gorkhalis in parliament......while requesting for gorkhaland 1st time in parliament........well even if i forget all this i said above.....give me one good reason y we should keep ourself attached to a state......who's so call ministrs call gorkhalis.....a foreinger.....ur talking abt unity and indian hood when ur own govt consider us foreinger........sumant sen one of the senior jounroulist from the telegarm news paper ....wrote ...in a such a discriment way abt gorkhalis..and abt thr origin....calling us forigner..........ur...so called...mr.chakaraborty.........made a..public...speech in which he stated...that india gorkhas r forienger.............how do u expect us to...belive on these kind of burocrates.....will devolope......darjeeling....neways....if they had ne intention of such kind they would have done far better to devolope......darjeeling i guess this....queation of gorkhaland woudn't have arised........we want gorkhaland....cos...a every single person in drajeeling wheather he is gorkhali or non-gorkhali.....wants a better life for him and his family.........which WB govt. failled to do so by ignoring....it....i guess this will b enough.....u don't have to worry abt.....revenue or..size of the state......we gorkhalis.....we have livied and ...survived ever condition....how worst can it be now.....................gorkhaland is wat we want that is wat we will have......and it dosn't matter...how long we have to wait.

Big fight for small states

The resurgence of the movement for a separate state of Gorkhaland carved out of West Bengal has revived the debate within political parties on smaller states. In the absence of unanimity, each political party has worked out its own logic for supporting or resisting demands for smaller - or not-so-small - states.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) favours splitting up states, barring a few, for better governance while the Congress party prefers not to have a fixed position on the issue. The Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) is against smaller states per se but its parent, Communist Party of India (CPI), is all for them – barring a few ones. Clearly, political India has no single mind on whether smaller states are good for the country.
The campaign for Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh had the strong backing of the tribals, who felt they were not getting their due from the plainspeople. Those clamouring for Uttaranchal - also mainly a hilly region and home to many tourist and Hindu pilgrimage centres - wanted to get out of the clutches of the mammoth Uttar Pradesh. In 2000, all three states - Uttaranchal, Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand - were carved respectively out of Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Bihar. That success only emboldened the feelings of those who say they too need separate states
Gorkhaland
Gorkhaland is the name given to the area around Darjeeling and the Duars in north West Bengal. Residents of the area, mostly Gorkhas have long demanded a separate state for themselves to preserve their Nepali identity and to improve their socio-economic conditions.
The Gorkhaland movement in the 1980s turned violent amid charges by the Marxists that the Congress was secretly backing the Gorkhas so as to undermine the CPI-M in West Bengal. Its advocates say they are not satisfied with the limited autonomy granted to them. A separate Gorkhaland would be made up mainly of the hilly parts of northern West Bengal, close to Nepal. Its capital would be Darjeeling, a tourist paradise. The CPI-M is fighting the Gorkhaland movement tooth and nail. Splitting West Bengal would mean the party losing an area of its present influence and administrative jurisdiction. (Sify)

Sikkim government moves Supreme Court on Gorkhaland issue

New Delhi: Following the ongoing Gorkhaland agitation, the Sikkim government on Wednesday moved the Supreme Court for a direction to the Centre and the West Bengal government to ensure free movement of traffic on National Highway No. 31A to and from Sikkim.
A vacation Bench of Justice Altamas Kabir and Justice G.S. Singhvi decided to hear the petition on Thursday on a mention made by counsel for the State A. Mariarputham about the filing of an application.
The Bench, after hearing senior counsel P.H. Parekh, said it would take up another application filed by O.P. Bhandari seeking the same relief.
The apex court had already issued notice on a writ petition from Mr. Bhandari for a direction to the parties concerned to take appropriate action during bandhs and strikes called by political parties and social organisations. The present applications are filed in the same writ petition.
The applicants said on account of frequent bandhs called by the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha in the last few days, the entire stretch of NH-31A from Siliguri to Sikkim was closed and traffic had been disrupted as the followers refused to allow vehicles on the road.
This was the only national highway connecting the State with the rest of the country and due to the blockade, the people of Sikkim and thousands of tourists were stranded. The people were facing miserable conditions as even essential commodities and medicines could not reach Sikkim.
The applicants pointed out that the GJM had commenced an indefinite strike from June 14 and had asked the people to store essential goods for about 45 days.
Contending that life had come to a standstill due to the road block, they sought a direction to the Centre and the West Bengal government to ensure free movement of vehicles and people on NH 31A. (The Hindu)

Gorkhaland for all, says GJM

Press Trust of India
Wednesday, June 25, 2008 (Kolkata)
The Gorkha Janamukti Morcha, which is fighting for Gorkhaland, on Wednesday said that the separate state was not only meant for Gorkhas, but for other communities, too.''We are not saying that Gorkhaland is only for the Gorkhas. It is for the people residing in the map of Gorkhaland,'' said GJM central committee member Anmole Prasad.''Our first priority is to ensure that there is no disharmony between communities in the course of the movement,'' Prasad, who is among the four-member GJM delegation, which arrived in Kolkata on Tuesday for talks with the West Bengal government on June 27, said.Prasad, the legal adviser of the GJM, said during their stay in Kolkata, the delegates wanted to strengthen harmony between Bengalis and Gorkhas.He, however, criticised the attacks on Morcha supporters at Bagdogra on June eight and on students. ''It was almost like ethnic cleansing. Students from the hills were driven out of hostels.'' (NDTV)

Gorkhaland impossible: Dasmunshi

Information and Broadcasting Minister Priyaranjan Dasmunshi on Thursday welcomed the bandh relaxation in the Darjeeling hills by the Gorkha Janamukti Morcha (GJM), but said that Gorkhaland was an impossibility.Blaming the state government for neglecting the Darjeeling hills, which had led to the growth of divisive forces in the region, the minister and also PCC chief told reporters that all problems would be settled through dialogue.But under no circumstances, West Bengal would be divided, he said adding that the demand for Gorkhaland would not be possible to meet.Dasmunshi also said there was no question of tripartite discussion on the Darjeeling issue. The GJM should sit with the state government and resolve problems through dialogue.Congress, he said, would extend all help and cooperation. (NDTV)

Gorkhaland stir will fizzle out

THE ISSUE : The state government should deal with the Gorkhaland agitation with a heavy hand.The Gorkhaland agitation is not new. It had been there in the past when Mr Subhas Ghisingh was in control. Subsequently, with devolution of power to the autonomous Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council (DGHC) the demand for a separate Gorkhaland subsided. But, the problem was not banished forever, corruption and lack of development has caused a lot of discontent. Mr Bimal Gurung, has now assumed leadership of the agitation and revived the dream of a separate Gorkhaland comprising Darjeeling, Siliguri and the adjoining Dooars. Earlier, the DGHC’s demand for inclusion in the Sixth Schedule had also been dashed. As a result, the confidence of the Gorkha people in the government of West Bengal has been shaken.In the circumstances, the state government will have a tough time dealing with the current agitation launched by the Gorkha Jan Mukti Morcha (GJMM) under Mr Gurung with a heavy hand, given the present political situation in the state in the aftermath of the panchayat election. With the tide now in the reverse course, any tangible solution appears to lie in forging an all-party consensus, particularly when the Centre has already made it clear that no further division of the state of West Bengal is acceptable.The call of the GJMM for continuous bandhs in the hills will prove counter-productive and fizzle out when the suffering of the people will multiply.PARAMANANDA PAL,17 June, Kolkata.(The statesman)

Darjeeling not to pay vehicle taxes from 7 July

Statesman News Service DARJEELING, June 25: Alleging apathy on the state government's part towards the Gorkhaland demand, the All Transport Joint Action Committee (ATJAC), Darjeeling has resolved to stop paying motor-vehicle taxes from 7 July. The decision comes in the wake of GJMM chief Mr Bimal Gurung's declaration to implement Gorkhaland number plates on vehicles within the boundary of the proposed state of Gorkhaland. “The state government has overlooked our problems and demands for ages. In defiance of its authority, all vehicles will bear GL on number plates from 7 July and no vehicle owner will pay taxes from the same date,” said ATJAC president Mr Narbu Lama today. This is an add-on to the existing non-cooperation move of the GJMM involving non-payment of electricity and telephone bills. “The rule is compulsory for all private and public vehicles including buses, lorries and two-wheelers. Strict action would be taken against those who do not obey. Those who are not a member of the committee will submit a copy of their license with the GJMM so that we can keep track,” Mr Lama stated. While the number on the plates would remain the same, vehicles of the Darjeeling, Kalimpong, Kurseong and Siliguri sub-divisions would be identified through the GL initials affixed on the number plates. The committee that has approximately 90 syndicates in Siliguri, Bagdogra and Dooars, is convincing them to fix the GL number plates as well. “A meeting will be convened with the syndicates on 28 July. It will be good if they decide to take the risk otherwise they will have to fix GL plates beyond Darjeeling More and towards the hills. The same applies to private vehicles coming to the hills,” Mr Lama said adding that his organisation, “would resort to other forms of demonstration if the administration stopped them.” The district administration considers the move if implemented as illegal. “We will do whatever is required under the Motor Vehicles Act. Anybody who dofies it is liable to penalty,” the Darjeeling district magistrate Mr Rajesh Pandey said.

BJP stands up for the Hills

Statesman News ServiceSILIGURI, June 25: The West Bengal unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party would abide by the party High Command's view on the sensitive Gorkhaland issue. “This is a serious issue and we are not competent to comment on the separate statehood matter when the party stalwart Mr L K Advani and the High Command are dealing with it directly,” the BJP state president Mr Sukumar Banerjee said today." Much confusion is being created over yesterday's meeting in New Delhi between Mr Advani and the Gorkha Jan Mukti Morcha delegation. It is not that the BJP leadership has thrown its weight behind the GJMM's statehood demand. Mr Advani has merely asked the GJMM delegation to place relevant papers,” Mr Banerjee said. When asked to comment on the BJP High Command's reported conveyance of sympathy for the Gorkhaland cause, the BJP leader said that expressing sympathy for a collective aspiration of a region was not wrong. “There is no doubt that the Darjeeling Hills happen to be among the most neglected regions and the state government has done practically nothing to uplift it. The grievances of the people are genuine,” he stated.Slamming the state and particularly the CPI-M, the BJP leader said that provocative statements being issued by some CPI-M leaders were queering the pitch further. “It is dangerous to keep this region disturbed forever because of its strategic importance. A viable solution must be evolved soon through the cooperation of all. And Mr Advani has just heralded this process,” Mr Banerjee said.Speaking on the subject, the Darjeeling district BJP president Mr Tapas Banerjee said that the CPI-M had been playing with fire and the situation in the Hills would run out of control if it continued.

Indian gorkhas are not rebels without a cause

When the first batch of Indian Nepalese, or Gorkhas as they like to be called, settled in what is now Darjeeling, there was nobody to record it for history. But Darjeeling already had a resident population when the British, after a ravaging war with the fierce warriors, brought them down with guile to annex the hill tracts in 1814. That was almost 200 years ago. A decade after that General Lloyd and J W Grant of the East India Company began the first British settlements in Darjeeling, finding it favourable both as a getaway and sanatorium. The region was formally adopted by the British in 1837 and a road from Pankhabari to Ghoom, and then up to Darjeeling, leapt up almost immediately as a hotel was established in Kurseong for European travellers. By 1866, Darjeeling district as we know today was complete. It's surprising, therefore, that CPM state secretariat member and West Bengal transport minister Subhas Chakrabarty should call Gorkhas foreigners, exhibiting ignorance about the history of a region that has long been a part of West Bengal. That apart, it's doubly worrying that his utterances have come when the hills are burning with the renewed rage of a people marginalized and dispossessed through centuries. It didn't help either that external affairs minister Pranab Mukherjee, and not the Union home minister, made a statement just a day before that when he dismissed the demand for a separate Gorkhaland. Could he have thought, for a slippery moment, that Gorkhas being "foreigners" all matters relating to them logically come under external affairs? Today, when charged up masses in the hills have pledged to go on a 45-day strike, botching up on history can have grave consequences. Also, it will be worthwhile for the Buddhadeb government to remember that the first rumblings of discontent were heard in the hills way back in 1907, making the call for separate statehood and identity one of the country's oldest rebellions. The wounds thus are centuries old and call for sensitivity and diplomacy. More importantly, Subash Ghising sold his Gorkhaland dream 20 years ago to a government that just wanted the monkey off its back. No genuine effort was made to tackle the festering problems of poverty, unemployment, water scarcity, lack of quality higher education and roads. All that was done was a promise made to Ghising that his autonomous hill council wouldn't be accountable to anyone and that he could run it like a fief if he so wanted with no questions asked. Now, though, both the dynamics of agitation and those leading it have changed. Indications are Bimal Gurung of the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha, spearheading the fresh homeland demand, will not sell out, prolonging an agitation that can be bitter, violent and more broadbased. After all, much has happened in the Hills in the last two decades and Gorkhas, in India and abroad, are better educated, better connected and better equipped to sustain their struggle. There is already a frantic Internet community exhorting people to lend a helping hand to their brethren back home. There is also a new cultural and linguistic nationalism in the way Gorkhas came together, from Nagaland to Nepal, Mumbai to Manhattan, to heave and push Prashant Tamang to his Indian Idol victory last year which has come into play in the region, making the situation trickier than earlier. Socio-economic indicators of the Hills show that a staggering 75% of the populace, according to Laden Tenzing of Tenzing Wine Store in Kurseong, are alcoholics. Though culturally a wine-drinking people, he says neither he nor his father remember so many people hitting the bottle. This time around, the agitators need to be brought to the table and efforts made to address immediate issues, ensuring that the escape hatch of all the piled up despondence and hopelessness is not violence. Not again. (Anand Soondas ,TNN)

Centre has not rejected demand for tripartite talks: GJM

KOLKATA: The Gorkha Janamukti Morcha (GJM) on Wednesday claimed that the Centre has not rejected its demand for tripartite talks on Gorkhaland and has been asked to approach the West Bengal government for a three-way discussion. "During a meeting between a GJM delegation and Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil in Delhi yesterday we were told that if we want a tripartite meeting, the state government can facilitate it and we must approach it," GJM Central Committee member and its legal advisor Anmole Prasad said. Stating that the GJM would reiterate its demand for Gorkhaland during the June 27 talks with West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, Prasad said, "We will ask him to take steps to facilitate a tripartite meeting." Commenting on reports appearing in the press, Prasad, who is a member of the four-member GJM delegation that arrived on Tuesday for talks with the state government said, "These are distorted versions. Unless a tripartite meeting is held how it can be said that Centre has rejected our demand for Gorkhaland?" Speaking about the relaxation till July 5 of the indefinite bandh in Darjeeling, he said it had been done to create a conducive climate for dialogue. "We want that there should be building of bridges for examining the demand for Gorkhaland," he said. On the problems being faced by Sikkim due to the blockades on National Highway 31-A because of its bandh, he said though the GJM did not want Sikkim to suffer, this was happening because of the geographical position of the Himalayan state. (TOI)

Gorkhaland Strike

The Gorkhaland movement will have a direct impact on the Tea industry

Statehood no solution: Maoists

Calcutta, June 23: The Nepal Maoists believe the Gorkhaland movement is none of their business but caution that statehood itself is not a solution.
Lakshman Panth, a middle-level leader of the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist), today said the statehood demand by the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha was an “internal affair of India”.
Panth, who attended a meeting organised in Calcutta by a forum of 14 Naxalite organisations, however, added that the creation of Uttarakhand and Chhattisgarh had “hardly solved the problems of the poor people”.
“That’s why we don’t think a Gorkhaland will automatically solve the problems of backwardness among Indian Nepalese or Gorkhas. A lot depends on the character of the leadership.” (The Telegraph)

GORKHLAND ISSUE CENTER AND COMMUNIST (CPM)

The nuclear deal issue is at its high. Mayawati has already withdrawn her support from the UPA alliance, Congress is looking for support from Mulayam Singh Yadav. CPM has bluntly rejected the proposal of Nuclear deal.
In the earlier stage when the nuclear deal became a big issue Nandigram happened and Congress sold it with Nandigram. This time again the nuclear deal has surfaced and Gorkhaland movement is at high. The mainstream media is giving trifle news of Gorkhaland vis-a vis N-deal. Today Rosan Giri led GJM team is in the capital asking for Gorkhaland and Kolkata TV said that center is ready for the tripatrite meeting. But it did not say what will be the topic of talk. Subash Chakraborty (CP(I)M) is adhering to his former stand and so is Priya Ranjan Das Munsi that there will be no separate state of Gorkhaland.
At this juncture what will be the fate of the Gorkhaland movement?
This time without invitation from the center the GJM team is in Capital and the report says that they are there to lobby for the Gorkhaland. In the middle of the day (2 pm news) the news comes that they have been assured of the tripatrite talk. Very astonishing!! Will Centre (UPA) government save its government and N-deal by selling Gorkhaland movement to CP(I)M this time like they sold Nandigram earlier and saved its govenment and CP(I)M?
As I see this is a seer eyewash from the side of Center. There is no moment of jubiliation here and GJM cannot take this as a victory as this could be the end of the Gandhigiri movement.

Gorkhas recruit hundreds in Darjeeling Hills

(Photo: from beacononline)
Darjeeling, June 24 (ANI): Hundreds of people queued up in the Darjeeling Hills area to participate in a Gorkha community recruitment drive.
At least 2,000 men and women are expected to be recruited over the next few days.
They will undergo martial arts training, and some of them will be allowed to carry kukris, a traditional knife, a Gorkha leader said.
Hundreds, including girls, have braved the steady drizzle and cold weather to throng a stadium to get their names registered.
We are here for the registration of GLP (Gorkha Land Personnel). We want Gorkhaland by any means. Until the government decides to give us Gorkhaland, we will continue our protests and fights for it, said Rima Chetri, a volunteer of the GLP force.
The Gorkha Jana Mukti Morcha (GJM) had called for an indefinite shutdown on Monday from June 10 onwards to mount pressure for the granting of separate statehood.
According to the GJM leaders, the decision to relax the shutdown followed requests of some union ministers to enable school students to finish their term before summer vacations begin from June 25.
The GJM, comprising about half a dozen parties, has been organizing protests over the past few months in the Darjeeling Hills over a demand for a separate Gorkhaland state.
The West Bengal Government, however, has been resisting the demand.
The strike in the Darjeeling Hills has badly hit the tourism and the tea industry, two mainstays of the local economy. A tea industry official has warned exports of premium Darjeeling tea could fall 20-25 per cent this year.
The Gorkha population in West Bengal is around one million out of 80 million people, although the overwhelming majority is concentrated in Darjeeling. (ANI)

CPI(ML) New Democracy Dharna at jantar mantar in support of separate state of Gorkhaland (Pictures)

All Photos taken by Jyoti Mukhia (21/6/08)