Ghising says he will return to Darjeeling; Morcha revamps Darjeeling unit

Ghisingh’s house in Jalpaiguri. (Biplab Basak - The Telegraph)

Ghising says he will return to Darjeeling
PTI News

Siliguri, Feb 3 (PTI) Gorkha National Liberation Front supremo and former Hill strongman Subhas Ghising, who was driven out from Darjeeling by the GJM, has said that he would return back to the town.

Ghising had shelved the demand for a separate Gorkhaland and settled for the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council following the signing of the DGHC Agreement by the Centre, West Bengal government and the GNLF in 1988.

The GNLF chief yesterday said that he would finalise plans for revival of the party before he returned to the Hills.

His demand for 6th Schedule status for Darjeeling was scrapped by the Centre in August 2009.

Rajen Mukhia, GNLF leader of Terai, told PTI that Ghising would return to Darjeeling any day after March 10, by which date Gorkha Janmukti Morcha chief Bimal Gurung has promised to achieve Gorkhaland.

---

Come back plea to chief
- GNLF supporters meet Ghisingh in Jalpaiguri OUR CORRESPONDENT - The Telegraph

Siliguri, Feb. 2: A wary group of nearly 60 GNLF supporters from Darjeeling today reached Jalpaiguri town to persuade party chief Subash Ghisingh to return to the hills and resume political activities.

Most of the supporters refused to be clicked or identified. “Please ensure that our faces are not photographed. It will be difficult to go back to the hills then,” one of them said, hinting that the party’s bete noire, the Gorkha Janmkukti Morcha, might not be, too, happy about the GNLF reorganising itself.

Ghisingh, who turned down his supporters’ plea to return, however, said his party would soon launch activities across the hills.

Since Ghisingh left Darjeeling town under Morcha pressure, he has been staying at a rented accommodation in Collegepara.

“We have been bearing the brunt of Morcha’s movement for the past two years and want the atrocities to end,” said a youth who introduced himself as a member of the Darjeeling unit of the GNLF.

One of the delegation members who met Ghisingh, said: “He (Ghisingh) is apprehensive that his return to the hills immediately might lead to severe deterioration of law and order. He has asked us to be patient.”

Meanwhile, the Bangla O Bangla Bhasa Bachao Committee has protested the Morcha plan to hold a rally in the plains. “We have come to know that the Vidyarthi Morcha (the student wing of the Morcha) is planning a public meeting at Dagapur. If the administration permits, our workers will march to the venue and stop it,” said Mukunda Majumdar, the president of the committee.
 

---

Morcha revamps Darjeeling unit
OUR CORRESPONDENT - The Telegraph

Darjeeling, Feb. 2: Two years after its inception, the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha has decided to restructure the party.

While Morcha president Bimal Gurung is visiting almost every village of Kalimpong subdivision during his 15-day tour, a meeting chaired by party vice-president Pradip Pradhan and general secretary Roshan Giri today decided to form the Darjeeling subdivisional committee.

“According to the instruction of the party president, we have formed the Darjeeling subdivisional committee. While Pemba Tshering Ola has been made the president, we have three vice-presidents in Dawa Lama (Singamari), Ramesh Lama (Peshok) and Kaziman Lohagan (Bijanbari),” said Giri. Ola is a former chairman of the Darjeeling municipality.

Puran Thami, a youth leader, has been made the general secretary of the committee. “All the presidents and secretaries of the zonal committees will be made executive members of the subdivisional committee,” Giri said.

There are 11 zones in Darjeeling subdivision but till date the party does not have a subdivisional committee, unlike in Kalimpong and Kurseong.

“We do not feel that there is a need to restructure the subdivisional committees in Kurseong and Kalimpong,” said Pradhan.

Gurung, during his tour, has been holding meetings with the local unit and urging his party workers to send “representatives who are honest and can speak about their (workers’) problems”.

Giri iterated Gurung’s stand today. “When the party was formed two years ago, people themselves came up to our office and unit leaders were chosen. We are now trying to restructure the organisation by forming more zonal committees and nominating new faces in places where the party has not functioned smoothly,” said Giri.

According to party sources, the Morcha now wants to set up a pyramidal structure — comprising unit, cluster unit, block, zonal, subdivisional and the central committee. “The party no longer wants to distinguish between old and new comers. In many places, the old comers have stalled the new comers from becoming leaders even though they are popular,” said a party source.

The ABGL has decided to announce its future course of action on Friday. “The programme is ready but we have a certain strategy and this is why we will be revealing our programmes on February 5,” said party president Madan Tamang, .

---

ABGL to begin agitation from Feb 5

Darjeeling, Feb  3: Madan  Tamang, president of Akhil Bharatiya Gorkha League decided to launch a fresh agitation from Feb 5, alerting strange activities of Morcha, which has already agreed upon with the Central government to implement Sixth Schedule in Darjeeling hills.   

---

PIL is not OP Bhandari’s own decision – Roshan Giri, GJM
Voice of Sikkim

02 Feb, Darjeeling: Gorkha Janmukti Morcha GJMM General Secretary Roshan Giri denies that OP Bhandari’s statement on Highway bandh issue, where Bhandari claimed to have filed PIL in the highest court of country. To file a PIL in Supreme Court requires a huge fund which is impossible for common man. “I filed PIL in Supreme Court not a Chamling “, the statement which was made by OP Bhandari , Advisory cum OSD to Government of Sikkim in the press yesterday. Giri alleged that situation needs to be throttled to unveil who is funding and brewing the NH31 A issue. Sikkim Government is trying to suppress Gorkhaland issue, Morcha do not believe in the statement made by OP Bhandari hence fourth the morcha will not dwindle from the demand with such statements, he said.