GJM: GTA clause recognises demand for Gorkhaland state

A day after the historic tripartite agreement on the hills was signed creating the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA), representatives of the Gorkha front reiterated the fact that they are not going back on their demand for a separate state.

“We are not going back on the earlier demand of a separate Gorkha state. In fact the agreement for GTA has a separate clause recognising the demand for a separate state of Gorkhaland, signifying that we are not going back on our earlier demand,” said Roshan Giri, Morcha general secretary.

The clause, Giri is referring to, is being interpreted by the opposition that Gorkhaland has found official recognition for the first time, by virtue of its inclusion in the GTA, which for now will have administrative control over the Hills of West Bengal, along with part of the plains.

The GTA was signed between the West Bengal government, Union government and the (GJM), in the presence of chief minister Mamata Banerjee and Union home minister, P Chidambaram. At the signing, Banerjee had stated that the GTA does not mean Gorkhaland.

“Bengal will not be separated and Darjeeling will smile inside the state. There will be no division of Bengal (Bangla bhag hochchhe na). Darjeeling is not outside West Bengal. It is the heart of West Bengal. We will stay together,” she told audiences comprising primarily of Gorkhaland supporters.

The GTA has since found support from members of the GJM, who have come to regard the accord as a victory, and have reiterated that the GTA is not the end, by the first step to Gorkhaland.

“Right now, we will concentrate on the GTA, the election process and selections to the jurisdictional committee. That in no way means we are ignoring the ultimate creation of Gorkhaland,” Giri said.

That the GTA is a success for the GJM, is proven by the fact that celebrations continued unabated in Darjeeling, while Siliguri and surrounding regions remained paralysed for the second consecutive day on the back of the 48 hour bandh called by anti-Gorkhaland organisations today in the foothills of the Darjeeling Himalayas and Dooars and Terai.

Some sections of the GJM however chose to take a more guarded stance. Harka Bahadur Chetri, the party spokesperson and the MLA from Kalimpong constituency, while reiterating the fact that the GTA wants Rs 1,000 crore by way of assistance, said that the demand for Gorkhaland is up for debate.