Separate Gorkhaland State - Gorkha Janmukti Yuva Morcha to hold rally

Kolkata The Gorkha Janmukti Yuva Morcha, the youth wing of the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha, has decided to hold a rally on December 18 to raise the demand for a separate Gorkhaland state, the first of its kind after the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA) treaty was signed.

The move has the blessings of the top GJM leadership, including Bimal Gurung who assured the Yuva Morcha that he would be present at the meeting.

The scenario in the hills has been changing fast after the Uttar Pradesh Assembly passed a resolution to split the state into four parts. The GJM leadership, along with its youth front, has again been gearing up for the Gorkhaland agitation.

Yesterday, the Yuva Morcha announced in Darjeeling that the Morcha would launch a full-throttle agitation next month. After a meeting with GJM president Bimal Gurung, the youth wing said it would organise the rally at Mungpoo in Darjeeling district on December 18, following which the sustained movement for a separate state would begin.

However, the central committee members are split over the decision to restart the Gorkhaland agitation.

A senior member of the committee said, “We are still in the dark as to what will be the final decision of our president Bimal Gurung. But, the reorganisation of the agitation and pushing the hills into the old days are, of course, not desirable. After a huge effort, we managed to have the GTA signed and everything is going well. The hills are returning to normalcy. The GTA bill is with the President and it is about to be signed in Parliament. It is not expected from the political heads of the party that they will disturb the development process again.”

However, the GJM leaders pointed out that they had never dropped the demand for a separate state, and that it was incorporated in the GTA agreement. The GJM leadership has been maintaining that whatever the future of the proposed GTA may be and the manner in which its territorial jurisdiction is determined, the demand for a separate state will always be foremost on the GJM agenda.

GJM general secretary Roshan Giri said, “Why should the Yuva Morcha not start the agitation? In the GTA, we never dropped our demand. The GTA was the first step to get the Gorkhaland state. The senior leadership will join the Yuva Morcha in the Gorkhaland agitation when the time comes. We might also be present at the meeting on December 18 to support the Yuva Morcha.”
-Express news service