Upcoming tripartite meeting heats up hill politics in Darjeeling

Darjeeling, July 22 (ANI): The upcoming sixth tripartite meet called by the Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram has united almost all regional parties in the hill town of Darjeeling in West Bengal, as many of the parties want it to be postponed.

Even as the significant meet is scheduled for Saturday (July 24) in the national capital, a sense of uncertainty prevails here about holding the tripartite talks between the Central government, State government of West Bengal and Gorkha Jan Mukti Morcha (GJMM).

Different parties like Bharatiya Gorhka Parisad, All India Gorhka league, Socialist Unity Centre Of India (SUCI), Communist party of Revolutionary Marxist, Trinamool Congress (TMC,Hill), Communist Party Of India (Marxist-Lenin) Liberation (CPIML), United forum of Cinchona Plantation and Communist Party of India, Marxist (CPIM) have jointly opposed the meeting.

They are demanding postponement of the meeting as top leaders of GJMM are accused of murdering Madan Tamang president of All India Gorkha League (AIGL).

They also maintain that GJMM is not the sole representative of Darjeeling.

Ashok Bhattacharya, Urban Development Minister of West-Bengal Government said that the meeting would give legitimacy to an organisation, which is now looked down upon by the people of the hills.

"This meeting right now means disrespecting the strength of democracy. It is the duty of the state as well as central government to respect the hill's democratic strength and the strength of peace. There should be a government, which would be able to prevail law in the hills, and everybody should encourage this. Only they would be able to resolve the issue," said Bhattacharya.

Avijeet Majumder, Central Committee Member of Communist Party Of India (Marxist-Lenin) Liberation (CPIML) party says that it should be postponed till Tamang' s killers are put behind the bars.

"The central as well as the state government has always tried to create some or the other interference in between the matters of the people of the hills and therefore they have only welcomed a newly evolved party Gorkha Jana Mukti Morcha (GJMM). And by doing that they are pampering this party and neglecting the democratic rights of other parties. In this newly developed situation here they have again called a tripartite meet and they have only invited this new party and the leaders of the party who are accused of murder charges. This is not acceptable, this is not democratic. We protest this," said Majumder.

Political circumstances of Darjeeling have altered drastically after the murder of Tamang on May 21. Since then Gorkha Jan Mukti Morcha (GJMM) is losing popularity. (ANI)