BJP cannot shun support to Gorkhaland with Jaswant's expulsion: GJM

Siliguri, Aug.19 (ANI): Members of the ethnic Gorkha Janmukti Morcha on Wednesday said that the expulsion of their legislator Jaswant Singh from the Bharatiya Janata Party would neither affect their demand for autonomous Gorkhaland and nor could BJP back out from its promise on the issue.

Jaswant Singh has been elected to Lok Sabha from Darjeeling parliamentary constituency.

Gorkha Janmukti Morcha wants a separate state to be carved out from West Bengal.

Gorkha Janamukti Morcha (GJM), the organisation demanding separate statehood, said that Jaswant Singh was still their lawmaker and hoped that he would continue to work for them.

"Jaswant Singh has been expelled from the party but he is still a member of the Parliament from Darjeeling. His political and personnel figure remains intact and has vast experience of 40 year in Indian politics. We expect that he would continue to work here and his expulsion would not have any effect," said Hemant Gautam, a leader of GJMM.

The members of the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha were reacting after hearing the news about Jaswant Singh being expelled from the primary membership of BJP on Wednesday (August 19).

Earlier in the day, the apex leadership of BJP which is presently meeting at Shimla in Himachal Pradesh expelled him over his book applauding Mohammad Ali Jinnah, founder of Pakistan in his recently released book.

The book 'Jinnah - India, Partition, Independence', has triggered a political storm in the country.

Newspapers quoted Jaswant Singh's book, as saying that Pakistan's founder was 'demonised in India'.

Jaswant Singh was elected from Darjeeling parliamentary constituency after the BJP extended its support to the call of Gorkhaland.

The Gorkha population in West Bengal is around one million out of 80 million people, although the overwhelming majority are concentrated in Darjeeling. (ANI)