Binay blames seven persons for Hill stir derailment'

SNS, Kalimpong, 11 October 2017: Rebel leader of the Gorkha Jan Mukti Morcha (GJM) and the newly-appointed chairman of the GTA Board of Adrninistrators, Binay Tamang, today said seven persons were involved in the "derailment" of the recent Gorkhaland agitation.

He, however, did not disclose all the names save one -Roshan Giri the general secretary of the party.

Addressing a gathering at Delo here today, Mr Tamang said that they had, in the 4th and 5th meeting of the Gorkhaland Movement Coordination Committee (GMCC), decided to go for a hunger strike which the GJM president, Bimal Gurung “cancelled without any valid reason”. "Had we gone for a fast-unto-death programme, the strike would not have stretched to 104 days and the discussions on tripartite talks would have been initiated by now,' Mr. Tamang said.

On the first bipartite meeting called by the state chief minister at Nabanna in Kolkata, Mr Tamang said that it was a good gesture from Miss Mamata Banerjee to say that she respects the constitutional demand for Gorkhaland.'

"All parties should have made a point to capitalise on her gesture, but no one did," he said.

He also spoke about Mr Gurung allegedly calling people on the Indo-Nepal border to look for some sharp-shooters for Rs 5 lakh to kill him. According to him, he later listened to recordings of the telephone conversation taken by the police.

"This was the reason why we decided on keeping police security at my residences," he added.

He also alleged that there were 3-4 attempts on his life and that Mr Gurung had allegedly asked some of his people from Takvar in Darjeeling to torch his house. "In another incident, Gurung asked his men to throw a bomb at my house," he said.

Mr Tamang and his supporters are preparing 11 programmes related to Gorkhaland (in almost all the places in the Hills) after Diwali. He appealed to everyone to come forward and support him.