Getting death threats: Tamang

SNS, Darjeeling, 30 September 2018: Gorkha Jan Mukti Morcha leader Binoy Tamang today claimed that he has been receiving letters from unknown persons and coming across social media posts that threaten him with life. lie also challenged the Morcha's Bimal Gurung camp and said that they could kill him when he goes to Delhi on 7 October without any police security.

Mr. Tamang was addressing a gathering at Majhua, around 30 km from Darjeeling, where he today laid the foundation stone for three projects worth about Rs 7 crore-construction of a motorable road from Rana Dara to Gairi Gaon via Sotang, and construction of school building for the Dr Radhakrishan High School there along with the construction of the Singbong Dera Piped water Supply scheme.

"There are people who are opposing me on social media, making personal attacks and saying whatever they feel like against me. There are also an anonymous letters being sent to me, saying that I will be killed like some leaders in the past I would like to tell them that I am not scared," said Mr Tamang.

"If you want to kill me then I am going to Delhi on the 7th of next month- starting here on the 6th and returning on the 8th. I will give you all 36 hours to kill me and I will not even have any police protection. There are being challenges issued in social media to me to walk alone, and that is what I will do even when I do get police security when I go to another state. This is a challenge to the Bimal camp that if they want to kill me then they can do so and my body will return on the 8th," Mr Tamang said, adding that he will be with four more people, "but no harm should come to them."

According to sources, Mr Tamang is going to Delhi as part of the Morcha's foundation day event to be held there on 7 October.

Speaking on the tea garden bonus payment issue, he said, a meeting for this will be held on the 3rd of next month in Kolata, which will be attended by members of our trade union. I have sent a letter to the governing body of the DTA, maintaining that I would agree to the bonus they were claiming to pay, but I told them that if they are following the Act, the GTA would not build houses in the tea gardens through the Gitanjali scheme or roads that are made through the RIDF an d PMNGES and that members of the DTA had to build those themselves."

It may be mentioned here that the DTA (Darjeding Tea Association), which 'represents the owners of a maximum number of tea gardens in the hills, has recently said that it will pay the puja bonus as per the provision of the Payment of Bonus Act 1965, which amounts to 8.33 percent.

"I assure tea garden workers that the puja bonus will be a two digit percentage figure," Mr Tamang, who is also the GTA chairman, said.

He further spoke on the different ongoing development work in the GTA areas, which included 71 road stretches measuring a total of 280 km under different places under the RIDF 30, drinking water projects with 70 more approved by the PHE, 56 schools being repaired or made, two colleges being repaired,31 sanitary schemes passed, 50 percent of funds already deposited in bank accounts of beneficiaries of about 1,281 persons under the Gitanjali housing scheme, and 50 percent of funds to be deposited in 4,936 beneficiaries' bank accounts under the PM Avas Yojna.