Darjeeling shutdown to continue.. request all board chairman to resign.....soon agitation will be started in Terai and Duars

TH, KOLKATA , JULY 06, 2017, A meeting of various political parties and organisations decided on Thursday to go ahead with the ongoing shutdown in the Darjeeling hills in support of the demand for a separate State of Gorkhaland.

The strike has been on since June 15. The hills are witnessing a near total shutdown for the last three weeks.

“The Gorkhaland Movement Coordination Committee at a meeting on Thursday condemned the blockade that has affected the transportation of basic commodities, including even baby foods, to the Darjeeling hills and Sikkim. The administration will be responsible for any unfortunate events arising out of the blockade,” Neeraj Zimba, spokesperson of the Gorkha National Liberation Front (GNLF), told The Hindu. Representatives of 14 political parties and social organisation participated in the meeting at St George School at Pedong. The members decided to form subcommittees, including a legal sub committee.

The next all-party meeting will be held on July 18.

KalimNews with agencies: Highlights of the resolutions adopted in the 1st meeting of GMCC held today:

1. Ongoing Indefinite strike will continue. Initially GJM had called a strike from 12 June declaring of all government offices. Indefinite total strike was started from the day time of 15 June 2017 after a raid by police in the GJM office located in Patleybas,

2.The next meeting of the GM Coordination Committee will be held on 18th of July.

The meeting condemned Kalimpong violence of 5th July and accused Police for inciting so.

3. GMCC condemned the recent blockade of the transportation of basic commodities to Sikkim and the hills including the medicines, food materials of babies and army.  It also was resolved that the WB Govt and administration will be responsible for casualty caused due to this.

4. It also condemned the firing by the police and creating tension and provoking common people on 5 July in Kalimpong.

5.It resolved that the area for the proposed Gorkhaland will be from Sunkosh in the east and Mechi in the west including Duars and Siliguri of the Terai region. 

6.  Strategies will be formulated for inclusion of Dooars and Terai region comprising of all communities of the area.

7. Agitational movement for separate state will be conducted in Terai and Dooars too.

8. Legal Cell, Human Rights Cell and Data and Research Cell constituted and members coopted in these cells. In the legal cell advocates, Pravakar Dewan, Niraj Zimba, Trilok chandra Roka and DK Pradhan are coopted while Arun Ghatani and Ram Moktan are coopted as coordinators of Human Rights Cell and Data and Research Cell .

9. Legal procedure will be initiated against violation of human Rights by the Police during the ongoing movement.

10. All participating political and nonpolitical outfits will go ahead with the Gorkhaland demand Collectively. GNLF declared that it has already dropped the idea of Sixth Schedule.

11.  Resolved to request all Chairman, Vice Chairman, Secretary and members of different Development boards including Siliguri Terai development board to resign from their posts and return to the hills.

12. Also resolved that unless GMCC receives any invitation from the central government calls, GMCC will not go for any talks..