Skip to main content

An elusive peace: the crisis in Darjeeling

FAQ |COMMENT


An elusive peace: the crisis in Darjeeling





SEPTEMBER 07, 2017 00:02 IST

UPDATED: SEPTEMBER 07, 2017 00:09 IST


Behind the prolonged crisis in the Darjeeling hills


Why is the agitation continuing?


Almost three months after the Darjeeling hills plunged into crisis over the demand for Gorkhaland, the situation remains in a flux, with the West Bengal government and the main political party heading the stir, the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM), failing to arrive at a solution.

The indefinite strike is in its 11th week, leaving the economy in a shambles; schools and colleges have been shut since the second week of June and normal life has come to a grinding halt. The agitation which started over protests on the issue of imposing Bengali State-wide spread to the entire hill districts of Darjeeling and Kalimpong.

What about talks with the State government?

Talks between the State government and political parties in the hills were held on August 29. Initially, political parties in the hills were reluctant to talk to the West Bengal government, but the Centre nudged both sides towards dialogue. Three political parties of the hills, including the GJM, participated in the talks. All stakeholders agreed to take forward the process of dialogue and emphasised the immediate need to restore normalcy in the hills.

Is there a rift within the GJM?

The hope of restoration of normalcy was short-lived with rifts within the GJM coming to the fore. Binoy Tamang, assistant general secretary of the GJM, who participated in the talks on behalf of the party, was expelled after he announced temporary lifting of the strike before the next round of talks on September 12. Even as Mr. Tamang and his associates stayed put in the hills with the State government’s backing, GJM president Bimal Gurung went into hiding, but called the shots nevertheless, announcing that the strike would continue. Though Mr. Gurung has softened his stand saying he will participate in the talks on September 12, the West Bengal police has launched a massive hunt for him in Darjeeling and Sikkim.

Is there a solution in sight?

With pressure mounting on the GJM, the indefinite strike may be lifted in the days to come. But the end of the strike may not bring lasting peace in the hills. Since the mid-1980s, the Darjeeling hills have witnessed agitations over the demand of a separate state. The formation of regional autonomous bodies brought peace for a while, but it was temporary. With the Centre and the West Bengal government showing no signs of approving the demand for Gorkhaland, granting more autonomous power to the hill people may be a way out of the impasse.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

OnePlus 5T Rumours: Release Date, UK Price, Features & Specifications

OnePlus 5T Rumours: Release Date, UK Price, Features & Specifications  18 Oct. 2017 21:44 OnePlus 5T could be announced on 5 November. We round-up the rumours on the new OnePlus 5T specifications, features, price and UK launch date. We’ve seen a ’T’ suffixed OnePlus before in the  OnePlus 3T . That phone arrived six months after the OnePlus 3, so the timing is right here for a successor to the  OnePlus 5  in the OnePlus 5T. However, rumours of a  leaked event invite  for 5 November have been confirmed false by OnePlus. The original T model OnePlus in essence gave the handset a speed boost, moving from the 2.2GHz Snapdragon 820 in the OnePlus 3 to the 2.35GHz Snapdragon 821 in the 3T. The new chip offered a 10 percent performance boost. OnePlus also upgraded the selfie camera from an 8Mp model to a 16Mp version that performed better in low light, and it increased the battery capacity from 3000mAh to 3400mAh. A new 128GB stor...
Post a Comment
Read more

It departments seized 650 Crore from Cafe Coffee day’s owner Siddhartha!

  IT departments seized 650 Crore from Cafe Coffee day’s owner Siddhartha! 25 Sep. 17:46 IT departments seized 650 Crore from Cafe Coffee day’s owner Siddhartha!  :- Well, as per the sources reports, IT officials find 650 Crore from a BJP leader Krishna’s son-in-law’s house. The Income-tax Department seized the money as they were informed about some black money in his house. Also, the sources are saying that currently, anybody from the house is not saying anything because they all are exposed. A senior tax officer said “Documents seized from the search operations at 25 places of Cafe Coffee Day and its group companies in Karnataka, Mumbai, and Chennai have revealed concealed income of over Rs 650 crore,” Also, the reports are saying that department raided on 25 properties connected to VG Siddhartha began on Thursday. Also, the raided held in the state capital, Hassan, Chikmagalur, Chennai, and Mumbai. IT departments seized 65...
Post a Comment
Read more

IGNOU exams 2017: 20000 aspirants to sit for MBA Openmat, B Ed, B Sc Nursing entrance tests

IGNOU exams 2017: 20000 aspirants to sit for MBA Openmat, B Ed, B Sc Nursing entrance tests IGNOU admit cards 2017: The candidates are advised to download the hall ticket by entering their name/date of birth and report to the examination centre.  | New Delhi |Published on: September 18, 2017 3:46 pm IGNOU campus Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) is conducting entrance examination for Management Programmes (Openmat-xlii), B.Sc.N (Pb) and B.Ed. programmes for the sessions starting from January, 2018. The exam will be held on September 24, 2017 and the admit cards are already released at ignou.ac.in. The schedule of the entrance test is as under: · Openmat-xlii (10 am to 1 pm) · B.Sc.Nursing (Post basic) (10 am to 12:30 pm) · B.Ed. (10 am to 12 pm) “The tests are being organised in 122 examination centres accommodating 28,108 candidates,” said NP Singh, Registrar, Student Evaluation Division, IGNOU. The candidates are ...
Post a Comment
Read more