GJM: Indefinite shutdown to continue in Bengal hills

Darjeeling, June 29 (SURYAA) Declaring that the indefinite shutdown in north Bengal hills will continue, the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) on Thursday announced the formation of a coordination committee at an all-party meeting to take forward the movement for a separate state of Gorkhaland.

"All parties have unanimously decided to continue the indefinite shutdown in the hills.

"Also, a committee, named Gorkhaland Movement Coordination Committee, has been formed with two members from each of the parties that attended the all-party meeting today," Binay Tamang, GJM's Assistant General Secretary, told IANS at the end of the Morcha-convened all-party meeting in Kalimpong.

Tamang said GJM Vice President Kalyan Dewan and Darjeeling municipality Chairman D.K. Pradhan have been chosen as convenors of the committee.

Denying that GJM was under political pressure from other parties in the hills to withdraw the shutdown, the Morcha leader claimed people from all sections of the society were supporting the shutdown towards fulfilment of their demand for a separate Gorkhaland.

"All sections of people in the region want the shutdown to continue until the Gorkhaland demand is achieved. All of us are fighting for the common demand of Gorkhaland," he said.

However, the leader refused to comment on the central government's stand on the issue.

"We are looking forward to the next all-party meeting in the hills which will be held on July 6," he added.

On the 15th day of the ongoing indefinite shutdown in the Darjeeling hills, the GJM, which is spearheading the movement in the region, called for the third all-party meeting in the last 20 days.

According to sources, all the 12 political parties that attended the last all-party meeting on June 20, including the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Gorkha National Liberation Front (GNLF) and the Akhil Bharatiya Gorkha League, were present at Thursday's meeting, held at a hotel in Kalimpong.

The ruling Trinamool Congress, Communist Party of India-Marxist and the Congress boycotted the conclave, as they did on the previous occasion.

Strongly condemning the decision to continue the shutdown, state Tourism Minister Gautam Deb termed the announcements as "unconstitutional and illegal" and urged the political parties to start a dialogue for restoring peace and prosperity in the hills.

"This move is unconstitutional, illegal, uncalled-for and unfortunate," Deb claimed.

"We appeal to the agitating political parties to call off the strike to reduce the suffering of the common people and to come back to the process of dialogue to bring back peace and prosperity in the hills," the Trinamool Congress leader told IANS over phone.