GJM flexes muscle, to hit Delhi streets

Amid the gathering momentum about a decision on Telangana drawing near, Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) has decided to take its call for a separate statehood of Gorkhaland to New Delhi, where the party leaders will hold a dharna at Jantar Mantar on January 28 and 29.

GJM general secretary Roshan Giri will lead the agitation programme along with three party MLAs — Harka Bahadur Chhetri, Trilok Dewan and Rohit Sharma.

"We will hold dharna and agitation programmes in Delhi from January 28 onwards demanding Gorkhaland. Our ultimate goal is Gorkhaland," Giri said.

"January 27 is the deadline given by the Telengana activists to the government. So we are expecting that the central government will announce Telengana state before that. We have to be in Delhi when the new state is announced. We too are under huge pressure here in the Hills," said a senior GJM central committee member.

However, the sudden decision by the GJM to send its senior leaders to Delhi even as Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee was scheduled to reach Darjeeling by Tuesday to "hold talks with the party leaders" has raised eyebrows.

Though GJM chief Bimal Gurung will not be going to Delhi, sources said that he has rejected the proposal of the Trionamool Congress leaders of north Bengal for holding a meeting with the CM when she will be visiting the Hills.

"Till now, we are not sure if any of the senior leaders will be available to meet the chief minister as there is no programme organised by us in Darjeeling on that day," Giri said.

After the GJM renewed the demand for the separate state at a rally in Darjeeling on January 20, Mamata had hurriedly directed her officers to plan a programme for Darjeeling and Siliguri on January 28 and 29 so that she could hold a meeting with the GJM leadership.

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