Now, a protest against Gorkhaland agitation in West Bengal

On Sunday, local residents of Siliguri, West Bengal, hosted a protest against the Gorkhaland agitation.

Kolkata, June 26: Since the beginning of June, the agitation over the separate state of Gorkhaland is keeping West Bengal in tenterhooks. Now, a counter protest to keep the state "united" has rocked the plains of the state.

On Sunday, around 5,000 people from Siliguri and adjoining areas hit the streets to protest against the demand for a Gorkhaland state.

The Sunday's protest is touted to be the first such apolitical procession on the issue since the supporters of Gorkha Janmukti Morcha renewed Gorkhaland agitation in the hills of Darjeeling.

Along with chanting slogans to keep the state "united", the protesters carried placards which read "Bengal can never be divided" and "we want peace in the hills", to name a few.

The protest which was partially non-violent saw some members of the procession smashing the windscreens of a few vehicles. The call for the rally was given on social media.

"Over the past few days, I have seen several posts on social media asking people to come out on the streets against the demand for Gorkhaland and attempts to divide Bengal. As a Siliguri resident, I, too, felt the urge to join the rally and protest against the statehood demand. We want Bengal to remain undivided," Avik Chakraborty, a civil engineer, told The Telegraph.

It's not the first time that rallies were hosted against the demand for Gorkhaland in the state in the last few years. But most of them were political in nature. Recently, the ruling Trinamool Congress organised a rally in Mirik against the supporters of GJM.

"Today's rally was, however, different in nature. It was organised by local residents who had initiated a campaign on social media against division of Bengal. People of different age groups and economic background took part in the march today," said Rohit Prasad, a trader.

The Siliguri protesters also shouted slogans against Sikkim chief minister Pawan Chamling for his letter to Union home minister Rajnath Singh supporting Gorkhaland.

The procession also witnessed a minor scuffle between the agitators and police personnel after the latter put up a barricade in the town to restrict the march further. The protesters also burnt the effigies of GJM chief Bimal Guring and CM Chamling.

"We walked the streets today to send a clear message that Darjeeling is an integral part of Bengal and it cannot be separated from the state under any situation," said one of the rallyists.

Meanwhile, the ongoing indefinite bandh called by the GJM demanding Gorkhaland is in place in Darjeeling. The agitation took an ugly turn when three supporters of the GJM were killed in a police firing nine days ago. During the scuffle, several security personnel were badly injured.

OneIndia News