Centre has also dispatched a company of 125 women security personnel to help restore peace in Darjeeling. The state government’s report is under examination of the ministry. The report is learnt to have blamed the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha for stoking trouble. ( File Photo)
In its report to the Ministry of Home Affairs on Darjeeling, the West Bengal government blamed the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha supporters for the unrest and revealed that 24 FIRs were registered in connection with the violence till June 13. The government said that the situation remained tense in the region but is now largely under control.
The report cited several instances of stone pelting at the security personnel and reports of bomb explosions in the Hills. The report also mentioned that several arms, explosives and illegal cash were recovered from a GJM office, next to party chief Bimal Gurung’s residence.
Following the submission of the report on Monday, the central government has dispatched additional paramilitary forces to Darjeeling in its bid to restore law and order in the hills. Earlier, the Home Ministry had put on hold the dispatch of 400 additional paramilitary personnel to Darjeeling as the state government had not sent a report on the situation. Ten companies are stationed in the region where the Morcha is agitating for a separate Gorkhaland.
Centre has also dispatched a company of 125 women security personnel to help restore peace in Darjeeling. The state government’s report is being examined by the ministry.
As the strike called by the Gorkha Janmulti Morcha (GJM) in Darjeeling entered its ninth day, the hilly region in West Bengal remained largely calm on Tuesday. The GJM leaders have called for a meeting today with all the political parties in the Hills to decide on the next course of action. The strike, which began as a protest against the Mamata Banerjee government’s announcement of making Bengali mandatory in schools, catapulted into renewed demands of a separate state of Gorkhaland. There were several reports of clashes between the protesters and police forces since the strike began, and three people lost their lives in the violence.
