Six members of Yuva Ekai, the youth wing of the Jana Andolan Party,
began an indefinite hunger strike at Tricone Park here today to put
pressure on the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha to come clean on its statehood
demand and not reduce the issue to a "gimmick for electoral gains".
In a letter addressed to Morcha president Bimal Gurung, the Yuva Ekai
listed three reasons for going on an indefinite hunger strike, that
include: the Morcha's explanation on the status of the demand for
Gorkhaland, withdrawal of all representatives of the Morcha from elected
bodies in Bengal, and force the party to exert pressure on Darjeeling
MP S.S. Ahluwalia to raise the demand of Gorkhaland in Parliament.
Amir Basnet, the secretary of the Yuva Ekai, said the indefinite
hunger strike would continue till the Morcha came up with a satisfactory
response. "We will await the kind of response the Morcha will give.
What is obvious though is that one can't talk about Gorkhaland while
clinging on to the chairs enjoying the blessings of the state from which
you want separation," he said.
The JAP, which has a significant following in
Kalimpong, had fought the recent municipal elections on the development
plank and lost to the Morcha which had sought the mandate of the people
on the issue of Gorkhaland. The JAP, too, at its core wants separation
from Bengal, but says it is opposed to the manner in which the Morcha
has reduced the demand for Gorkhaland to suit its own vested interest.
The Yuva Ekai said the Morcha had over the years won seven elections
on the issue of Gorkhaland, including those to Lok Sabha, Assembly,
municipalities and the GTA, but had precious little to show for it. "How
many national parties have agreed to extend support to the demand for
Gorkhaland? Has the NDA, of which the Morcha is an ally, passed a
resolution in favour of Gorkhaland?" asked Basnet, quoting from the
letter written to Gurung.
The youth wing of the JAP has also asked the Darjeeling MP to raise
the Gorkhaland issue in Parliament so that the country knows that the
true aspiration of the people of the hills was separate from Bengal.
"Our party had submitted a draft bill on Gorkhaland to the Darjeeling MP
prior to the Assembly elections last year, and also held demonstrations
in front of his Delhi residence to put pressure on him to table the
bill in parliament, but he flatly refused. He, instead, should have been
building consensus within the BJP and also the NDA on the Gorkhaland
issue because that is his mandate," said Basnet.
Basnet also demanded that the Morcha sever its ties with the state
government completely to prove that it was indeed committed to a cause
it claims to espouse. "The Morcha must withdraw all elected
representatives from different tiers of the state government, including
the GTA," he said. The Morcha is in power in three of the four hill
municipalities and the GTA and all the three hill legislators are its
representatives.(TT)
Post a Comment
We love to hear from you! What's on your mind?