Anit Thapa, the president of Bharatiya Gorkha Prajatantrik Morcha, appealed to the hill people on Wednesday to vote for candidates of regional parties and independents and not those of the BJP in Saturday's rural polls.

Thapa, who reached Sukna in the foothills, around 10km from here, to campaign for his party, accused the BJP of duping the Gorkhas for around 15 years.

“The BJP is the biggest fraud… the party cheated Gorkhas and betrayed our trust. They have devoured 15 valuable years of ours. This time, you have to cast your vote with open eyes. You should vote for regional parties and even Independents.... We should ensure that BJP scores zero in the panchayat elections,” said Thapa, who is also the chief executive of the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration.

In the hill polls, the BJP, along with a number of other hill-based parties, have formed an alliance. The BGPM headed by Thapa, which has an informal alliance with Trinamul, is the other major contender.

The BJP has fielded the maximum number of candidates among the constituent parties of the alliance. In contrast, Trinamul has fielded only a few candidates.

Ever since the BJP and parties such as Bimal Gurung’s Gorkha Janmukti Morcha, Ajoy Edwards’ Hamro Party, the GNLF and the CPRM have formed the alliance, Thapa has been raising questions as to whether the presence of regional parties in the hills would be hit by the BJP’s move to pit the maximum number of candidates.

“In a number of earlier elections, they (the BJP) exploited the Gorkhas by stoking their sentiments (on the Gorkhaland issue). However, after the elections, they did nothing. The time has come to give them a befitting reply by uprooting them from the hills,” said Thapa.

He said that ever since his party assumed power in the GTA, they were working on development across the hilly areas in association with the state government.

“We are working on ‘state subjects’ with the Bengal government. Raju Bista, the BJP MP from here, in a similar manner, should take up ‘central subjects’ (the issue of separate statehood) with the central government,” the BGPM president said.

Thapa claimed he has kept his promise that he would take the initiative to ensure that the rural polls are conducted in the hills. On July 8, two-tier panchayat elections will be held in the hills after a gap of 22 years.