Gurung acted like Tughlaq, says former aide

Vivek Chhetri, TT, Mar 28, 2018, Darjeeling: Binita Roka, a close associate of Bimal Gurung during the last phase of the Gorkhaland agitation, on Tuesday likened him to the mercurial Sultan of Delhi, Muhammad-bin-Tughlaq, and appealed to the Gorkhas across the country not to vote the BJP in the next Lok Sabha polls.

Roka was appointed as the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha's spokesperson during the agitation and the president of the Nari Morcha's Darjeeling subdivisional committee.

"There was no strategy, no roadmap, the leadership was wrong and Bimal Gurung worked like Muhammad-bin-Tughlaq. He only played with the emotions of the people and only brought miseries to the common public," Roka said with regard to Gurung's handling of the statehood movement.

Tughlaq, who was the Sultan of Delhi from 1325 to 1351 is known for ordering shifting the capital from Delhi to Daulatabad only to bring it back to Delhi half way through his project.

Last year, the hills were shut for a stretch of 104 days but with no tangible result to show, apart from throwing the tourism and tea sectors into doldrums.

Extending support to Binay Tamang-Anit Thapa camp of the Morcha, Roka, who was not seen much in public over the past many months, said:

"We all need to come out openly and support Binay Tamang and Anit Thapa. They took personal risk to bring normalcy and peace to the region. They saved the hills from further crisis, further deaths and violence," she said.

Roka, who is also a former Darjeeling municipal councillor, said it was the adamant nature of Gurung that had brought about the crisis in the hills. "It is because of his wrong leadership and adamant nature that the common people had to suffer. He could neither keep good relation with the state nor get any help from the Centre," Roka said, questioning Gurung's leadership abilities.

The woman leader also went hammer and tongs against the BJP leadership. "The biggest betrayer has been the BJP-led government at the Centre. During the 2007 agitation, at least the Congress government at the Centre intervened and held 11 tripartite meetings to find a solution which was accepted by the Morcha then," Roka said.

"This time, despite the hill people voting the BJP, it maintained a stoic silence throughout the agitation. Gorkhas from across the country should not cast even a single vote for the BJP in next year's Lok Sabha elections," said Roka.

The Darjeeling BJP MP, S.S. Ahluwalia, had been elected with the support of the Morcha in the Lok Sabha polls in 20014.

The Centre had promised Gurung to hold an official level meeting to discuss "all issues" within a fortnight, while requesting him to lift the indefinite strike. A recent RTI query filed by a resident of Darjeeling revealed that the Centre had no such plans for a meeting even in January this year, a full four months after the assurance.