Leader in Gurung phone tape held

Rohit Thapa

TT, Siliguri, Sept. 3: Bengal police today arrested a senior Gorkha Janmukti Morcha leader perceived to be close to Bimal Gurung, continuing with its crackdown on those owing allegiance to the hill party's chief.

Rohit Thapa, the secretary of the Dooars committee of the Morcha who was part of the delegation to meet the chief minister on August 29, had featured in a purported phone conversation released by Gurung last week.

In the audio clip, Thapa can be heard telling Gurung about the alleged plan of Morcha leaders Binay Tamang and Anit Thapa to float a new party and a "deal" the two had apparently struck with the government.

Thapa - the senior-most Morcha leader from the plains to be arrested - is accused of being involved in the clash between Gorkhaland supporters and the police in Jaigaon, a town bordering Bhutan, on July 30 this year.

"Rohit Thapa was arrested this afternoon from Jaigaon in connection with the violence there on July 30. He had instigated people to attack the police and set vehicles on fire," said A. Ravindranath, the superintendent of police of Alipurduar.

Sources said the tide turned against Thapa, a central committee member of the Morcha in Alipurduar, when Gurung released the purported phone conversation.

Thapa had admitted to having the conversation.

The tapes had come against the backdrop of the Morcha chief accusing some leaders of his party of being hand in glove with the government to conspire against him.

Following the purported conversation and Tamang's announcement of the relaxation of the strike, he and Anit Thapa were expelled from the party.

"It seems that the administration didn't take Rohit Thapa's allegiance to Gurung lightly," said a Morcha leader.

Thapa's arrest followed the police swoop on a Morcha central committee meeting in Sikkim, where Gurung himself was present.

"The state government wants to carry on with the crackdown on anyone perceived to be close to Gurung. They seem to be tightening the noose," an observer said.

Some political analysts said Thapa's arrest also suggested that the government was taking all action to prevent a spillover of the hill movement to the plains.

"Rohit Thapa is one of the top leaders in the Dooars. It seems that the state is determined to prevent any spilling of the agitation, which is taking unexpected turns now," another observer said.

During the Sikkim raid, the police had arrested three prominent Morcha leaders of the Terai - Shankar Adhikary, Hemant Gautam and Siddhant Adhikary.

Even as the police continued with the crackdown, the situation in the hills was far from peaceful.

Yesterday night, a bomb exploded outside a police outpost in Sixth Mile, 18km away from Darjeeling town.

No policeman was injured. After the current spate of attacks on security establishments, policemen have deserted all outposts.

"Though there was no injury or casualty, yesterday's blast caused the maximum damage to government property in comparison to the other recent explosions. It only reconfirms the presence of hardliners ," said a police source.

While the situation remained tensed in the hills, Siliguri today witnessed a fresh round of protests against Gurung and Sikkim chief minister Pawan Chamling, who has voiced support for Gorkhaland.