The Bengal government has officially set the ball rolling to hold the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA) elections, likely next month, by appointing Jalpaiguri divisional commissioner as the election authority and Darjeeling district magistrate as the election officer.

Elections to the hill body have been due since 2017. The latest notification issued by the state home and hill Affairs department, which is headed by chief minister Mamata Banerjee, has triggered frenzied activities among parties both in favour and against GTA polls.

However, the general perception is that even the parties who are against the election will contest the polls on one pretext or the other. Bharatiya Gorkha Prajatantrik Morcha (BGPM), headed by Anit Thapa, has decided to hold subdivisional committee meetings on Friday to discuss upcoming polls. A mega political rally will be held at Pokhriabong on Sunday to cover three GTA constituencies, Nagri-Dhajea, Sukhia-Maneybhanjyan and Pokhriabong-Chamong.

There are 45 constituencies under the GTA. The Ajoy Edwards-led Hamro Party, which recently won the Darjeeling civic polls, has also started preparatory poll works. The BGPM, Hamro Party and Trinamul want GTA polls.

The principal parties opposed to the GTA polls are the GNLF and the BJP. Neeraj Zimba, GNLF spokesperson and Darjeeling MLA who contested on a BJP ticket, said though the parties are opposed to the GTA elections, their alliance partners can’t afford to give an empty goal post to opponents.

“Our alliance partners are in touch with each other and through our MP (Raju Bista) with the home ministry. We, however, know if Mamata Banerjee wants she can hold the polls, even if people do not want it,” said Zimba.

The GNLF leader said three possible situations were being mulled —approaching the judiciary, seeking an intervention by the Union home ministry in terms an announcement on the permanent political solution or all like-minded parties coming together.

“The judiciary process might be slow and the other option (Centre’s intervention)may not happen. In this case all like-minded parties have to come together as we cannot allow them (opponents) to score a goal in an empty goal post,” said Zimba.

“There is a possibility that we will tell people that we will immediately resign on winning the elections to convey that the hill people don’t want GTA polls,” said Zimba, adding that they had little option other than to use “ballots as bullets” if elections are announced.

The other hill party Gorkha Janmukti Morcha, which is not against GTA per se, wants the elections to be deferred till all powers promised to the GTA in the 2011 memorandum of agreement of the hills is transferred, held a closed-door meeting in Darjeeling on Thursday.

Many consider that the party that comes to power in GTA will dominate hill politics.