Anit Thapa, the chief executive of the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA), on Thursday warned that the district magistrates of Darjeeling and Kalimpong would have to take responsibility if trouble erupted in the hills over the sensitive issue of land.

The trigger for the warning was boards erected by the district administrations on certain plots in the hills. The boards read “the land belongs to the government of
West Bengal”.

The authorities launched a crackdown on encroachment on government land across Bengal after the chief minister had publicly slammed the practice and ordered officials and civic bodies to reclaim such plots.

Accordingly, the officials have put up “land” boards on several plots across the state. In the hills, however, the plots where the boards have come up were not reclaimed by the government.

“There is a GTA in the districts of Darjeeling and Kalimpong and I would ask the DMs of Darjeeling and Kalimpong to consult the GTA — that was formed after both the state and the Centre agreed, and not work as you feel like,” Thapa said in a video statement.

Thapa said he had noticed in the past 10-15 days that the boards were coming up in the hill districts.

“If trouble breaks out in the hills because of this issue, then the DMs of Darjeeling and Kalimpong must take responsibility,” Thapa has said.

Land is a sensitive issue in the Darjeeling hills where the demand for Gorkhaland state guides politics.

“The administration should be sensitive to complex issues in the hills,” said Thapa.

Observers believe Thapa has brought out the video to keep a grip on the situation.

“The DMs are simply following the orders of their bosses. The issue can only be solved by the chief minister. Thapa’s decision to issue a video statement seems to be an attempt to keep a grip on the issue and make sure that things don’t slip out of control,” said an observer.

The GTA chief also asked elected panchayat members to pursue the matter actively. “They should raise their voices in favour of the common people as they represent them,” said Thapa.

Thapa who shares a cordial relationship with Mamata Banerjee said he would continue to work closely with the state government. “However, we need to raise issues of the people. I will also write to the chief minister soon,” said Thapa.

Even before Thapa made a video, Ajoy Edwards, who is an elected GTA Sabha member and the president of the Hamro Party, had raised the matter after a board proclaiming the government’s ownership of a plot had been put up at Dotheriya, about 15km
from Darjeeling.

“If a board stating that the land belonged to the GTA had been put up, I would not have said anything,” said Edwards, adding that the plot concerned had been flattened by Subash Ghisingh, when he was the chairman of the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council, to construct a helipad.

“Even though the helipad was not completed, Subash Ghisingh later held a festival there. Does this mean that Ghisingh’s decision to construct a helipad was illegal,” said Edwards.

Darjeeling BJP MP Raju Bista and Independent GTA Sabha member Binay Tamang also flagged the issue and noted that land was a subject transferred to the GTA.

Preeti Goyal and Balasubramanian T, the district magistrates of Darjeeling and Kalimpong, respectively, did not take calls from this newspaper for their reactions to Thapa’s statement.