Fri. Mar 29th, 2024

The Gorkha Janmukti Morcha Chief Bimal Gurung in an audio message on Tuesday denied any possibility of withdrawing the indefinite shutdown in the hills of West Bengal which enters its 91st day today.

The GJM along with other regional parties have been demonstrating protest in Darjeeling demanding for a separate Gorkhaland. It has now been more than three months that the people of the hills are suffering the consequences of the shutdown. The Mamata Banerjee led government in order to suppress the agitation had banned the supply of the basic necessity goods and even the telephone and internet services are shut down in the region. Apart from hospitals and medical outlets all the schools, offices shops are closed in the region from the time the protest for a separate statehood began in Darjeeling.

A few days back the regional parties had sought the intervention of the West Bengal Governor to restore peace in the region. They had also requested the Banerjee led government to hold a discussion with the protestors and win back their confidence in order to bring normalcy to the region. GJM Chief Bimal Gurung had also agreed to hold discussions with the Chief Minister.

However, as per the latest updates, GJM Chief has rejected Banerjee’s appeal to take back the protest. He said that the protest would continue until the centre does not intervene and holds a tripartite meeting on the Gorkhaland issue. “The indefinite shutdown in the hills will continue and there is no question of calling it off, until and unless tripartite talks are organised by the central government,” Bimal Gurung said in an audio message.

Initially, when there were talks of the Centre’s intervention, GJM had agreed to hold meeting only with the centre but later it also agreed to cooperate and hold a tripartite meeting between, GJM, the centre and the Banerjee led government.

Meanwhile, GJMis also dealing with difference amongst the party. GJM Chief Bimal Gurung accused Binay Tamang, former assistant secretary of GJM that he had joined hands with the state government to fulfil his greed. When the West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee appealed to withdraw the shutdown, Bimal said that it was initially the idea of Binay and he was not even in the favour of the indefinite shutdown. He said that after his house was raided by the police on 15 June, Binay Tamang had called for an indefinite shutdown in Darjeeling. Bimal also alleged that Binay for his personal interest was trying to sacrifice the demand for a separate statehood of Gorkhaland.

“It was Binay Tamang, the then assistant secretary of the party, who had called the indefinite shutdown after my house was raided (by the police) on June 15. I was initially against this… Now Binay has joined hands with the state government to serve his own vested interests,” the GJM Chief Bimal Gurung said.