Gorkha Janamukti Morcha delegation meets Buddhadeb

KOLKATA: A Gorkha Janamukti Morcha (GJM) delegation on Wednesday met the West Bengal chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee and presented a situation report on the affairs in the Darjeeling hills. The chief minister, however, promised to look into some of their demands like the withdrawal of police cases against GJM activists.

During the 90-minute meeting with the chief minister, the GJM delegation also demanded the inclusion of Siliguri and Dooars into the proposed Gorkhaland for which they have been battling all these years.

GJM leader Roshan Giri told reporters after the meeting: "We have briefed the chief minister. We also demanded that Adivasi Vikash Parishad activists who had organised attacks on our men be arrested within a week and police free our men who were falsely implicated," Mr Giri said, adding that the chief minister had assured them to look into the demands.

Mr Giri also demanded that houses of GJM activists damaged by the Parishad supporters would need to be repaired by the Buddhadeb administration. "The chief minister assured us in this light," Mr Giri added.

"We've briefed the chief minister and the ball is now in his court, " the GJM leader said. He added that the outcome of the meeting with the chief minister had already been conveyed to GJM president Bimal Gurung and "it is he who will take the next course of action."

Asked whether the GJM will defer its current agitation after the meeting with the chief minister, Mr Giri said: "We may take the Gandhian course in future. But it is our president who will decide."

The GJM leader added that his organisation had demanded that the state government arrange for medical care for those GJM activists injured in the attacks by the Parishad and CPIM supporters.

Mr Giri said the GJM delegation had urged the chief minister to allow GJM activists to organise their movement in the plains like Siliguri and Jalpaiguri. "But the chief minister advised us to wait for some time until the restoration of normalcy in the region," said Mr Giri.

It is learnt that Mr Bhattacharjee did not make any commitment on the GJM's demand for inclusion of Siliguri and Dooars within the proposed Gorkhaland. Earlier, the state government had categorically ruled out the GJM's demand for a separate state for the Gorkhas and a separate police force for Darjeeling hills.