GNLF remains silent on Hills situation

SNS, Kurseong, 8 September 2013: The once most powerful party in the Hills ~ the Gorkha National Liberation Front (GNLF) ~ is now again lying low in the backdrop of the ongoing GJMM-led Gorkhaland agitation in the Darjeeling Hills.

In the fag end of July, when GJMM chief Bimal Gurung had once again adopted the agitation path with a slew of demonstration, rallies and bandhs, the GNLF party had reacted sceptically to such a proposal. 

But after that no comments have been made by the GNLF party even while the bandh has stretched to more than a month and unrest in Darjeeling Hills has slowly risen. Even when the GJMM, having changed its political strategy, announced an All Hills Party meet on Gorkhaland and called on the GNLF to attend, the former still remained aloof and did not participate in the meeting that was held on 12 August. 

The GNLF had then said that they have no comments on the matter but are suspicious about the motives of the GJMM-led third phase Gorkhaland agitation as such kind of rallies and bandhs had also been earlier staged by the present dispensation in demand of Gorkhaland yet they finally signed the unconstitutional GTA agreement in tandem with the Central and State government. 

“Hence, we are keeping quiet on the matter,” a GNLF leader said. Senior GNLF Nima Lama, said: "We have nothing to say from our side as we think that presently silence is the best politics.” 

Importantly, such politics based on remaining quiet and silent like an onlooker had been played by the GNLF supremo Mr Subash Ghising when the Bimal Gurung-led GJMM was on the rise and leading the second phase of the Gorkhaland agitation from 2007 onwards. 

Even when the GNLF supremo Mr Ghisingh and his followers were allegedly ousted and hounded out from the Hills, the GNLF still did not react. 

Afterwards, on 18 July 2011, when the GJMM finally accepted the GTA Act shelving the Gorkhaland agitation for the time being, thereafter the GNLF started to reactivate its party units across the Hills again and was on with their work of strengthening their party base when Mr Gurung suddenly re-announced a fresh round of Gorkhaland agitation. 

As suddenly too has the GNLF disappeared from the political tangle of a restless Darjeeling Hills in the midst of a vigorous Gorkhaland agitation and gone back to its basics that “Silence is the best politics”.

(source & courtesy: http://www.thestatesman.net/news/14147-gnlf-remains-silent-on-hills-situation.html)