Morcha to ink deal after scrutiny - Gorkhaland still on agenda: Gurung

Darjeeling, June 14: The Gorkha Janmukti Morcha today said the memorandum of settlement (MoS) of the new administrative set-up would be signed only if the party’s demands tallied with the proposals of the Centre and the state and the provisions of the body were endorsed by the various units of the outfit.

“I along with Mamata Banerjee and P. Chidambaram will sign the MoS. Nothing has been finalised yet as we need to study and analyse the proposals of the Centre and the state and see that they tally with the agreements reached with us earlier (in the previous tripartite meetings). We will then make it public and will sign the agreement only after we get a no-objection-certificate from the hill people,” Morcha president Bimal Gurung told party leaders at the Darjeeling Gymkhana Club today.

Gurung was trying to drive home the point that the Morcha had been transparent in its functioning and reiterated that the proposed administrative arrangement would not become a reality unless parts of the Dooars and the Terai were included in the new framework.

“It is because of this stand that the state and the Centre have agreed to form a high-powered committee to look into the territorial demand. We have to nominate four members to the committee. Our representatives to the committee will be from the Dooars and the Terai as they know their areas well,” said Gurung.

Gurung launched an attack on the rival parties in the hills and said they were criticising the Morcha without going through the draft of the MoS.

“The draft is being worked out right now but the opposition parties are levelling unfounded allegations against us. Let them first go through it and then point out if there are any shortcomings,” said Gurung.

“We are struggling for territory. Those who are speaking against us had confined us to the three hill subdivisions in the past. Am I doing any wrong by trying to increase the territory under our jurisdiction?” he asked.

Explaining the logic behind accepting the new administrative unit, Gurung said: “The state government is saying they will solve the hill problem. If they want to, let them solve the problem. Why should we stop them? Whatever may be the outcome, we will not drop the demand for Gorkhaland or let it be diluted by any agreement.”

Roshan Giri, the general secretary of the Morcha, who had signed the minutes of the talks between the state chief secretary and a Morcha delegation in Calcutta on June 7, read out the details of the meeting.

“The chief secretary has mentioned in the minutes that the demand for Gorkhaland has been put on record even though it was not discussed that day. We are not diluting the demand and that is why we do not want any constitutional recognition for the new body. Once the new body gets a constitutional recognition, it will be deemed as a permanent solution,” said Giri.

“A permanent solution to the hill problem is either a Union Territory status or a separate state of Gorkhaland,” Giri said.

He was hinting that the new body would be set up, not through a constitutional amendment, but through an act passed by the Assembly.

Gurung, too, said the agitation for Gorkhaland would carry on. “I will not head the new body or be involved with it. My only aim is to create Gorkhaland and I will continue to move forward in this direction.”

TT