Hills & plains slam new panel

June 17: Darjeeling-based organisations opposed to the formation of the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration today termed the formation of the fact-finding committee to look into the Justice Shyamal Sen report an eyewash to misguide people.

Outfits in the plains that are fighting against the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha’s demand to include the Dooars and the Terai in the GTA said the government had constituted the committee to appease Bimal Gurung.

The Gorkhaland Task Force, an agglomeration of parties such as the CPRM, ABGL and the GNLF(C), urged the Morcha to reject the GTA agreement and embark on a united movement for statehood.

“Before setting off for Calcutta, the Morcha leaders had shouted at the top of their voices that they were rejecting the Justice Sen report. But once in Calcutta, they could not utter a word before the chief minister…. The new committee is a way of giving the people a sense of false hope,” said Govind Chhetri, a spokesperson for the CPRM.

R. Moktan, the national co-ordinator of the GTF, said in Kalimpong, that the Morcha should respect the aspirations of the people in the hills.

“The Morcha should reject the GTA agreement and come forward for a united movement for statehood,” he said.

The Terai Dooars Joint Action Committee said the formation of the new panel was part of Mamata Banerjee’s appeasement of the Morcha.

“The chief minister should stop appeasing Bimal Gurung and his party by announcing the formation of one committee after another to settle the territory issue. The adivasis in the foothills are aggrieved because of such acts of the chief minister. The formation of the fact-finding committee is a bid to divert the attention of the people in both the hills and plains,” said Rajesh Lakra, the convener of the Joint Action Committee.

Lakra said the Parishad would wait for one more week for the government to come out with its final decision on the GTA’s territorial reach, after which they would launch a movement. (TT)