No names have come up for contesting from Darjeeling Lok Sabha seat: Bimal Gurung

KOLKATA: Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) supremo Bimal Gurung today said the party is yet to decide on a candidate for the Darjeeling Lok Sabha seat.

"I would like to confirm that no names have come up for candidature. There are some rumours going around, but nothing has been finalised," Gurung said in a Facebook post.

"We will get a candidate who will raise the long-pending demands of the Gorkhas, Adivasis and the deprived and destitute people of Darjeeling and Jalpaiguri districts," he added.

The GJM leadership, along with the BJP leaders in-charge for West Bengal, today met at BJP leader LK Advani's residence in New Delhi and discussed election strategies, Gurung said.

"At the meeting, we discussed the imminent need for consolidating the national security in Darjeeling and Jalpaiguri districts as it is a geo-politically sensitive region. We also stressed on the need for the safety and security of Gorkhas living in India," Gurung said.

GJM, which is seen as playing a deciding factor in the Darjeeling Lok Sabha seat and in parts of north Bengal, yesterday decided to forge an alliance with BJP for the upcoming general elections.

In the 2009 Lok Sabha polls, GJM had supported senior BJP leader Jaswant Singh's successful bid for the Darjeeling Lok Sabha seat.