Gorkha Janmukti Morcha leader Bimal Gurung, in his first public address on Sunday after three-and-a-half years, went after the BJP but simultaneously underscored that he had not softened his stand on statehood.
“We will teach a lesson to the BJP in the coming Assembly elections here and make them struggle for each vote in the hills, Terai, Dooars and across north Bengal. They (BJP) did politics by using us as pawns. Also, let me be clear that we will never deviate from our demand for Gorkhaland,” said Gurung to a crowd of 40,000-odd people at the Indira Gandhi Maidan here.
The Morcha leader spoke on what made him extend his support to Mamata Banerjee and the Trinamul Congress. Mamata assured him of looking into the issue of a permanent political solution for the hills, Gurung claimed.
“I have spoken to the chief minister on the issue. She has assured me that she is committed to bringing a permanent solution for the hills. I thank her because it is for her that I could come to this meeting. We will put all efforts to ensure that her party wins maximum number of seats in north Bengal,” said Gurung.
He repeatedly fumed at the BJP, the party that he had allied with since 2009, and said Darjeeling MP Raju Bista should resign.
“We made him win the parliamentary election with a margin of lakhs of votes. But now we want to say the time has come to close his chapter. He should submit his resignation (as MP). This MP and his party did nothing to address our principal demand or the demand to confer Scheduled Tribe status on 11 hill communities,” Gurung said.
At the meeting venue, a steady hum of “Gorkhaland” was witnessed throughout the day, whether in the songs played to entertain the crowd, or in recurring slogans chanted by leaders or in remarks made by leaders including Gurung or in crowd reactions.
Political observers said Gurung and his associates want to send a message to their supporters that they had not softened their stand on Gorkhaland.
“They also want to drive home the point that the decision to support Trinamul, a party that is completely against Gorkhaland, is a political move to defeat the BJP and that they still demand Gorkhaland,” said an observer.
Gurung did not spare the other faction of Morcha headed by Binay Tamang and Anit Thapa, and alleged corruption in the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration.
In GTA, only 30 per cent of funds is being used for projects while the remaining 70 per cent is siphoned, he alleged.
“There are two persons who have said that I need their permission to enter the hills. Who are they to make such comments? If I want, I can ascend to the hills tomorrow or the day after,” he remarked.
The Morcha leader asserted that in another seven days, he would hold a public meeting in Darjeeling and in all will address around 20 meetings in hills and adjoining foothills.
Gurung’s remarks indicate that he has drawn up a plan to revive his support base in the hills, Terai and the Dooars.
Observers said both factions of Morcha are competing to prove to Trinamul that each has a larger support base than the other. The Tamang camp announced a public meeting in Sukna, some 10km from here, on December 13.
“It would be interesting to see how these two factions plan strategies to prevent the other side from drawing the maximum support,” said a veteran in hill politics.