Tables turned, Morcha wary

A GNLF rally at Sonada near Kurseong on Sunday. Picture by Suman Tamang Darjeeling, April 4(VIVEK CHHETRI) : The tables have turned — on the candles and hill voters need to be doubly sure while casting their ballots. In Darjeeling and Kalimpong, the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha is fighting on the table symbol while arch rival ABGL is contesting with the candle. But in the Kurseong constituency, the symbols have been interchanged which could lead to confusion among the voters. The Morcha has accused the ABGL of indulging in “foul play” to “mislead voters”. “In all the three constituencies, we had mentioned the candle as our first symbol preference while filing our nominations on March 28,” said Morcha general secretary Roshan Giri. “To create confusion in the minds of the voters, the ABGL indulged in foul play and also chose the same symbol in Darjeeling and Kalimpong. But the symbol confusion will not affect us much as our supporters are conscious voters,” Giri added. Sources in the administration said with both the parties opting for the candle in Darjeeling and Kalimpong, a draw was organised. While the ABGL got the candle, the Morcha had to be satisfied with the table symbol. In Kurseong, the Morcha candidate opted for the candle and the ABGL for the table as their first preferences and so there was no need for a draw, sources said. The Morcha’s second choice in all the three seats was the table. Dawa Sherpa, the working president of the ABGL, said: “We had left the choice of symbols to our three candidates.” Candidates of both the parties have had to choose their symbols from what was offered by the Election Commission because of the regional nature of their outfits. The elections in Kurseong are expected to be interesting not just because of the symbol confusion but also because of the GNLF’s sudden spurt in activity. Over the past one week, the GNLF has organised public rallies in Kurseong, Mirik and Sonada, suggesting that it still has sufficient support base in the region. GNLF president Subash Ghisingh is also expected to return to the hills after three years to campaign for his party, which has been given the kite symbol in all the three hill constituencies. Palden Bhutia, the president of the Kurseong branch committee of the GNLF, said: “We cannot divulge the exact date when our chief will be coming to the hills but he will definitely come.”