GJM supporters take out a mass rally to demand for separate state ‘Gorkhaland’ during a protest in Mirik near Darjeeling . (PTI File Photo)
GJM supporters on Tuesday vandalised several government buildings in Mirik, following clashes with the Trinamool Congress (TMC), and later the police, in the area on Monday.
The situation between Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) supporters and police continues to remain tense after a GJM worker, Ashish Tamang, was allegedly killed in police firing during their clash with security forces on Monday. In the earlier clash between the party and TMC at 6.30 pm, two TMC workers and one GJM worker was injured.
Even as Tamang’s body was brought to Mirik from Siliguri after his postmortem, a group of GJM supporters went a rampage, vandalising and torching the old municipal building in Mirik. Other government buildings were also subsequently vandalised. The police lobbed tear gas shells and fired in the air in retaliation, with sources saying the situation is under control.
At the fifth all-party meeting held in Kalimpong on Tuesday, Gorkha leaders appealed for peace in Mirik. “Whether they are TMC members or GJM, at the end of the day, they are all Gorkhas. We must not clash with each other,” said GNLF spokesperson and Gorkhaland movement coordination committee member Neeraj Zimba.
After a meeting lasting around six hours, the committee has decided to hold its next meeting in Delhi on August 1. “Since we will be entering peak monsoon season, it makes more sense to hold the meetings in Delhi. Also, we want to be in regular touch with the central government, with Union ministers and MPs, and appraise them of what is happening in West Bengal. We also want to thank Omar Abdullah for his support to Gorkhaland,” said Zimba.
The parties also decided to continue the indefinite strike until a “concrete result” is achieved. So while the agitations continue in the Hills, least 32 Gorkha leaders are to relocate to New Delhi over the next few days. “All major decisions regarding a future course of action will be taken in Delhi,” added Zimba.
A delegation will also be sent to meet Sikkim Governor Shriniwas Patil, Sikkim Chief Minister Pawan Kumar Chamling and West Bengal Governor Keshari Nath Tripathi to appraise them of the situation in the Hills – a decision that had been taken at an earlier meet, and was simply reiterated on Tuesday.
The committee has also condemned the comments of Trinamool MLA Paresh Pal, who on Monday told three Gorkha MLAs in the state Assembly lobby to “go back to Darjeeling”.
