CM may take steps against GJMM’s threat to boycott taxes

SILIGURI, April 30: The Darjeeling district CPI-M leadership today claimed here that chief minister Mr Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee has promised stern administrative measures against Gorkha Jan Mukti Morcha’s threat to boycott central and state taxes and disrupt power supply in the Hills and the plains.It may be mentioned here that the GJMM leader Mr Bimal Gurung announced a government tax boycott and BSNL and electricity bill boycott programme in the Darjeeling Hills and threatened to disrupt power supply from various Hill-based power projects to the plains as a protest against the state’s denial to grant permission to the GJMM to hold a rally in Siliguri. CPI-M leaders Mr Ananda Pathak and party state committee member Mr Jibesh Sarkar today condemned the “terror tactics” being applied by the GJMM, especially on the CPI-M activists in the Hills. “ The GJMM has let loose a reign of terror in the name of a democratic movement. The Opposition, especially those connected with the CPI-M are being threatened and money is being extorted from the common people,” Mr Ananda Pathak alleged. Coming down heavily on the GJMM Mr Sarkar said that the threat of disrupting power lines was part of a premeditated conspiracy to provoke a Hill-plain conflagration. “The chief minister has taken serious note of the threat along with the threat of boycotting central and state taxes. He has assured of strict administrative measures to curb such ‘infantile act’ on the part of GJMM,” Mr Sarkar added. Slamming the Congress’s ambivalent stand on the demand of Gorkhaland, the CPI-M leader said that the party was indulging in double standards with the Congress MP from Darjeeling Mr Dawa Narbula persistently advocating the Gorkhaland theory and the party leadership downplaying the issue by branding it Mr Narbula’s personal opinion. “This is a dangerous game and a national party like the Congress should come clear on the issue,” Mr Sarkar stated. (The Statesman)

CPM twisting facts on Morcha rally issue : RSP

Statesman News Service SILIGURI, April 30: The Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP) today alleged that the Darjeeling district CPI-M was deliberately twisting facts over the issue of Gorkha Janmukti Morcha’s rally in Siliguri. “The CPI-M district leadership is confusing people over the issue, giving incorrect information in regard to RSP’s avowed stand regarding the controversy,” the RSP Darjeeling district leadership said.The CPI-M state committee member from Siliguri Mr Jibesh Sarkar said yesterday that the RSP had thrown its full weight behind the state administration’s decision of not giving permission to the proposed GJMM rally in Siliguri at the district Left Front meeting on 27 April. Criticising the CPI-M for misrepresentation of facts, Mr Bikash Sen Roy, a district committee member of the RSP, said today that the GJMM Siliguri rally issue had not been discussed at all at the last Darjeeling district Left Front meeting. “The issue was not on the meeting agenda and so the question of the RSP’s supporting the state administration in the matter does not arise,” the RSP leader said. “I was present at the meeting and the agenda centred around the proposed Left Front programme of Human Chain on May Day. I was astonished to see the statement of Mr Jibesh Sarkar in the newspaper saying that the RSP had supported the state administration in this controversial matter,” Mr Sen Roy added. Meanwhile, Mr Binay Chakravarty, the state committee member of the RSP said today that the CPI-M was quickly becoming isolated over the issue and is twisting the facts.

Shun hills, Asok to tourists

April 30: Bengal minister Asok Bhattacharya today advised tourists to give Darjeeling a miss this season because of the turmoil in the hills, for which he blamed the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha.
“I earnestly request tourists not to head for Darjeeling this summer. The situation in the hills is too complicated,” Bhattacharya told reporters at the Writers’ Buildings. “Whenever tourists get stuck in the hills because of the Morcha’s demonstrations, police are forced to come to their rescue. It goes to show that the situation is far from normal.”
The Morcha, spearheading the movement for a separate state of Gorkhaland, recently shut down all government offices in the hills for 14 days. Tourist facilities were kept outside the strike’s purview, but the toy train rides remained suspended.
Yesterday, no hired vehicles was available in Darjeeling town from 10am-2pm as Morcha-affiliated taxi drivers trooped off to a meeting of their association.
State home secretary Asok Mohan Chakrabarti said Jalpaiguri divisional commissioner B L Meena would hold a meeting with Morcha leaders tomorrow to look into their demands. “A clear picture will emerge after the meeting,” Chakrabarti said.
Asked if it would be advisable for tourists to stay away from the hills, the home secretary said: “I will not comment on that. But newspaper reports are talking about disturbances in the hills.”
Chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee remained silent when asked if the situation in Darjeeling was going out of control.
The hill affairs minister, however, said the government was running out of patience. “There’s a limit to our patience. The Morcha’s unconstitutional movement cannot be allowed to go on like this. It has led to losses amounting to several crores (in the hills).”
In Darjeeling, the general secretary of the Morcha, Roshan Giri, reacted strongly to Bhattacharya’s “request to tourists”.
“Asok Bhattacharya has proved that he is anti-Darjeeling and anti-hill people. There will be no major problems for tourists if they come to the hills. Bhattacharya is acting irresponsibly and has forgotten that he is a state minister. Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee should immediately sack him for making such irresponsible comments,” Giri said.
Asked about the possible problems that tourists might face in Darjeeling, Giri said: “We do not have any plans to call a strike immediately. And if we are forced to do so, we will announce it in advance.”
Full salary
Government employees in the hills, including contract workers of the DGHC, will receive full salary for April even though they did not attend work for a fortnight when the Morcha shut down the offices. (The Telegraph)