Darj Bhanu Bhawan gets back "Veer Gorkha" statue

Public will be allowed to visit the premises of the Gorkha Rang Manch, no political programmes will be allowed to be held here

REZA PRADHAN, SNS, DARJEELING. 2 OCTOBER:  The Gorkha Rang Manch Bhawan, also known as Bhanu Bhawan, will soon allow peopie to visit its premises, while officials have also decided that no political programmes will be allowed to be held there. 

An announcement to this effect was made today by the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration Chainnam Anit Thapa at an event organised there on Gandhi Jayanti, during which the 'Veer Gorkha' statue, which was on top of the building, was re-installed. Speaking at the programme, Mr Thapa said, "As per suggestions made by former GTA chairman Binoy Tamang, we will issue an order tomorrow that the public will be allowed to visit the premises of the Gorkha Rang Manch.Also, no political programmes will be allowed to be held here as it is an asset built by the leader Subash Ghisingh, and we should try and improve on it. Only cultural programmes will be held here." Though a dream project of the late Gorkha National Liberation Front leader, Subash Ghisingh, who was also in charge of the erstwhile Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council, the auditorium had been used as a GTA office during the time of Morcha leader Bimal Gurung. It was during his tenure in 2014 that the 'Veer Gorkha' statue was removed from the top there and rcplaced by two hands joined in a 'namastey'

The state government had closed down the building in June 2017 and imposed Section 144 there, following a clash between the police and the then Gorkha Jan Mukti Morcha supporters.

The building was handed back to the GTA around the end of last year.

"This programme is meant to send across a message that we want to bring about a new political culture in the hills. Earlier, there was a culture of new leaders chasing away the former leaders and replacing things made by them. We want to change such a culture. Whatever work that was done during the DGHC time should be further improved upon," Mr Thapa said.

Speaking on the same lines, Mr Tamang, who is also the president of a faction of the Gorkha Jan Mukti Morcha, said, "When the statue was brought down, it was removed under the pretext that the Khukuri of the statue was facing Mahakal Mandir, which was a dishonour. But I would like to say that if you look at it closely, it is facing the Chumbi Valley in China, which is our enemy."

GNLF leader Ajoy Edwards, who was also present in the progiumme today, thanked the GTA chairman for reinstalling the statue to its original place.

(Courtesy & source: https://epaper.thestatesman.com/2843644/Siliguri-The-Statesman/03-TH-OCTOBER-2020#clip/55382036/ded41b23-4287-4fdf-a80f-e8762ea5f4b8/585.999494825665:703.5726919650151)