EC poser: What’s stalling Gurung arrest Backlash fear, force crunch, says govt

The observer team sent by the Election Commission in Siliguri on Tuesday. Picture by Kundan Yolmo From the Telegraph Feb. 15: The Election Commission’s observer team today quizzed the Darjeeling district administration on the prospect of arresting Bimal Gurung, which, according to the poll panel, could ease problems in the hills. District magistrate Mohan Gandhi, police chief Devendra Prakash Singh and other Darjeeling district officials were asked why the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha chief could not be arrested despite several pending non-bailable warrants against him. In an FIR filed by the Jalpaiguri police after the Sibchu firing, Gurung has been charged with rioting armed with deadly weapons, attempt to murder, voluntarily causing hurt with a dangerous weapon and obstructing a public servant in the discharge of public function. Most of the charges are non-bailable. If convicted under these charges, Gurung could face imprisonment for a period ranging from three years to a life term. Gurung’s name was also mentioned in the FIR filed by the ABGL after the killing of their chief Madan Tamang last year. However, in the chargesheet filed by the CID in this case, Gurung’s name was not mentioned. An official privy to the content of today’s discussion, said: “Gandhi (DM) and Singh (SP) explained that Gurung’s arrest would solve few problems. On the flip side, it could lead to a drastic escalation of unrest and violence in the hills, to counter which the administration would need the assistance of a much larger presence of central forces.” Commission sources in Delhi today said the poll panel, preoccupied with the Maoist-affected belt and other trouble-prone areas of south Bengal, had not been giving the situation in the hills its due priority. “Darjeeling had not been in prime focus until the firing last Tuesday opened our eyes to the situation in the hills,” said a senior poll panel official from Delhi. For its renewed focus on the hills the commission today sent Zaki Ahmed, the deputy director of the National Crime Records Bureau, to assist the team in Siliguri. On arriving in Siliguri this afternoon, the team, led by Bihar’s chief electoral officer Sudhir Kumar Rakesh, held a string of meetings with the district administration and political parties. “If elections are held in the hills anytime soon, it would not be possible for us to depute polling agents, booth agents, or campaign due to the terror unleashed by the Morcha,” said CPM state committee member Jibesh Sarkar after meeting the observers. Later at night, the team met a Morcha delegation in Darjeeling. Jyoti Kumar Rai, a central committee member of the party, said the observers had been told that the Morcha wanted the elections to be held in the hills. “We have apprised the team about the police atrocities on the hill people. We have also told them that it was the Left Front, which did not want elections. An example is the Subash Ghisingh-run DGHC functioned without holding any polls.” Rai also said the team had been told that the state government had wanted elections to the proposed interim set-up, to which the Morcha had agreed. “But now it is they (the government) who are saying that elections could not be held.” At the meeting with the district administration, the team discussed the following: lThe progress of the Madan Tamang assassination probe. lThe seizure of arms: Why only two firearms were recovered from the district between January 9 and 31? The seizure count, the team pointed out, should be substantially higher for February. lThe 2,000 pending non-bailable warrants. The administration was asked to step up preventive arrests and prevent intimidation by the Morcha. lThe team wanted to know what the challenges in conducting elections in Bijanbari, Sonada, Kalimpong and Garidhura were as the Left memorandum to the commission had marked these places as trouble zones. The team, said Rakesh, would split itself in three groups and visit the areas tomorrow. lWhether there was any truth in the Left’s allegation that the Morcha had rigged the 2009 Lok Sabha polls to help its supported candidate, Jaswant Singh, secure victory. Gandhi was asked to show “zero tolerance” for violators of the polling process. “Some have mentioned that situation is not conducive to hold elections in the hills. We have taken note of everything. We will visit the region, talk to people,” said Rakesh.

ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY VIVEK CHHETRI