Left to give up Hills for foothills

Subhro Niyogi, Pinak Priya Bhattacharya, Deep Gazmer, TNN, Mar 13, 2016, Darjeeling/Siliguri: Mamata Banerjee's move to include sitting MLA Harka Bahadur Chhetri in her fold seems to have pushed GJM chief Bimal Gurung closer to the Left, hinting at a change in the electoral equations in seven assembly seats in the Hills and foothills.

Following GJM's hint they would pull out all the stops to defeat Trinamool, CPM's Asok Bhattacharya said on Saturday the Left would not field candidates in Darjeeling, Kalimpong and Kurseong. 

"We want to vote the Trinamool out of power and so has indicated GJM leaders. The Left Front wants the GJM to come clear on the stand. We are weak in the Hills, and so, don't want division of votes against Trinamool. The Left Front manisfesto talks about more powers to GTA. It also opposes state's undue intervention into GTA matters," the CPM leader said. The non-aggression tactic with the GJM can change the fate of parties in the foothills, Siliguri, Matigara-Naxalbari, Dabgram-Fulbari and also Phansidowa, with substantial Nepali population. Gurung's decision to support forces, whose aim is to defeat the Trinamool, was expected, given the last three years' development that saw the GJM-Trinamool "affair" turn acrimonious. 

Not only did Mamata Banerjee's assertion at a Darjeeling rally in 2013 that she would not allow Bengal's bifurcation embarrass Gurung, the formation of tribal boards to wean away Hills communities such as Lepchas, Tamangs, Sherpas and Bhutias, from the GJM fold, also didn't go down well with him. The last straw was GJM spokesperson and Kalimpong satrap Harka's defection to form Jan Andolan Party (JAP) and the state announcing a separate Kalimpong district. The twin moves were seen as Mamata's direct bid to split GJM and Hills votes. 

The GJM's allegations were further vindicated when Mamata announced Harka as her candidate in Kalimpong, though he insisted he would contest for JAP. Though Harka is open to Trinamool support and, in turn, ready to back it in the plains, Mamata's announcement also turned some Hills communities against him. GJM assistant general secretary Jyoti Kumar Rai said, the Trinamool tried to undermine the GJM in the Hills for which they would face a backlash in the plains. "Around 20-25% of our voter base is in the foothills, enough to upset any equation. 

The Hills are not laughing," he said. This has come as a boost for Left. "In 2011, the GJM supported Trinamool in good faith. But that trust was breached... If GJM supports us in the plains, we will reciprocate in the Hills," Bhattacharya said. who has led CPM to two electoral victories in civic polls since the 2011 debacle. If CPM had been battered by an anti-incumbency wave in 2011 following 33 years in power, Bhattacharjee sees Trinamool Congress at the receiving end, at least in north Bengal, after just five years at the helm.