The Darjeeling hills on Saturday witnessed two large marches demanding the return of peace in strife-torn Manipur.
The Darjeeling Christians United Forum brought out a peace rally in Darjeeling town from near the railway station to Chowrasta. The Bijanbari Unemployed Youth Forum took out another rally in Bijanbari, about 30km from Darjeeling.
Bishop Stephen Lepcha from the Darjeeling Diocese participated in the Darjeeling event.
“We are not here to blame anyone for what happened in Manipur but we condemn the evil, sinful acts that destroy humanity. The people of Darjeeling stand with the suffering people of Manipur,” said Bishop Stephen.
The Christian population in the Darjeeling hills is more than a lakh but the protest march was not community specific as people from different walks of life and different faiths came out in large numbers “for the sake of humanity”.
The Bijanbari congregation, called “Goodwill Rally”, witnessed the participation of schoolchildren along with people from various walks of life.
The twin rallies in the Darjeeling hills took the count of such gatherings demanding peace in Manipur to eight in the last few days.
“These rallies were essentially apolitical and people joined voluntarily.... There is considerable outrage in the hills over what is happening in Manipur, which has a significant Gorkha population,” said a source.
The first protest in the hills was organised by the apolitical bodies Kalimpong Bar Association and the district chapter of the All India Women’s Conference. These organisations had held a dharna and brought out a silent rally in Kalimpong on July 24.
“Our heart cries out at the inhuman acts perpetuated in Manipur. We are here not just to stand up for women but we are also standing for humanity,” Aruna Pradhan, president, All India Women’s Conference (Kalimpong chapter), said.
On the same day, the Congress also held a dharna at Damber Chowk in Darjeeling.
These spontaneous protests were organised after videos of two women being paraded naked in Manipur on May 4 emerged on social media last month.
After the Kalimpong protest, the Bharatiya Gorkha Prajatantrik Morcha (BGPM) also held a protest march in Darjeeling on July 26. However, BGPM leaders categorically mentioned that they did not want to give the rally a political colour.
Last week, another rally was organised in Kalimpong while two more rallies were held in Kurseong town.
Darjeeling BJP MP Raju Bista has been on the firing line for his silence on the Manipur issue.
“Why is Raju Bista silent on Manipur? He hails from Manipur and he should show some empathy on humanitarian grounds,” said a BGPM leader.