Bimal Gurung and the Gorkhaland Separatist movement in North Bengal
- In Current Affairs
- 12:48 PM, Oct 17, 2017
- Ranabir Bhattacharyya
The death of young SI Amitabha Malik has yet again shifted the focus towards Bimal Gurung, the towering figure in North Bengal, who has shrewdly nurtured the political aspirations of North Bengal for a separate Gorkhaland. The rise of Bimal Gurung certainly goes in sync with the history of Gorkhaland Movement in West Bengal. From the Jyoti Basu era to that of present Mamata Banerjee government, Gorkhaland issue has helped the separatist forces to nurture these possibilities in the districts of North Bengal, which are close to international borders of Bangladesh and Nepal. Bimal Gurung at present is shielding himself in the hills with his close aides and probable assistance from the Sikkim government.
Bimal Gurung's connection to the Gorkhaland Movement dates back to the early 80's of the last century when Subhas Ghising was the dominant force in the hills. When the Subhas Ghising led Gorkhaland National Liberation Front (GNLF) went into a bloody agitation in the hills, Bimal Gurung participated in the agitation as one of the active members of Gorkha Volunteer Corps. When the Darjeeling Hill District Council (DHDC) was set up between the centre, West Bengal Government and the GNLF in 1988, Bimal Gurung was close to Subhas Ghising, and thus remained close to power as well.
After one and half decades in power, Subhas Ghising was losing his control over GNLF and eventually when was made the sole caretaker of DGHC till the sixth schedule was established, there were rifts within the GNLF. Interestingly there was controversy even regarding Prashant Tamang from the hills who participated in a reality show (Indian Idol) from Darjeeling in 2007. Bimal Gurung seized upon the occasion and dethroned Subhas Ghising. Ultimately, Subhas Ghising resigned from the post of chairmanship of the DGHC in March 2008. Bimal Gurung launched GJM (Gorkha Janmukti Morcha) and it became the face of Gorkhaland Movement in hills, reducing GNLF to a meagre political outfit with minimal support.
When TMC came into power and the Communists lost in the elections after three and half decades in West Bengal, Bimal Gurung stepped up the ante for a separate Gorkhaland. Although Gorkha Janmukti Morcha called for non-violent and non-cooperation movement, it was nothing less than hooliganism in the hills. The opportunistic TMC government led by Mamata Banerjee opted for the formation of tripartite GTA agreement, which gave both power and autonomy to Bimal Gurung & Co. There were various allegations of corruptions within GTA against Gurung. In such a scenario, when TMC was also increasing its political base in hills, Bimal Gurung relaunched the bandh-strategy in hills over the mandatory use of Bengali language in Schools in the hills. An indefinite bandh in the hills in June 2017 and as of now, after four months, Darjeeling and nearby localities are yet to return back to normalcy, disrupting the tourism prospects of the region. Since then, Bimal Gurung has been playing hide and seek with the state government, creating chaos and anarchy in North Bengal.
At present, there are speculations in the hills of North Bengal that Bimal Gurung is desperately trying to raise a private army. Bimal Gurung is not only exploiting the local sentiment for Gorkhaland but also assembling army sort of ammunitions like uniforms, shoes, marks, sleeping bags, battle fatigues - which are common to any guerilla warfare. West Bengal Police has already seized arms and ammunitions from Gorkha Janmukti Morcha members who killed young SI Amitabh Malik in direct confrontation when police came to search for Bimal Gurung. The whole approach of Bimal Gurung in the last few months raises a lot of question. Time and again, he has been the major culprit behind the vandalism in the hills and the loss of life. Right from Madan Tamang's murder in open daylight, there have been so many pending cases against him. He has cunningly played politics in the hills, garnering support from BJP. But the BJP top brass is already aware of Bimal Gurung's track record and has distanced itself from supporting or campaigning for GJM.
There is no denying the fact that state government policies are to be blamed too in the whole fiasco. Myopic policies from both the state government and the central government have helped Bimal Gurung & Co to camouflaging it into an ethnic movement. Nevertheless, Bimal Gurung, a branded hooligan, needs to be arrested as soon as possible. Whether BJP, rather the central government wants to continue with the policy of small states reflecting effective governance or not, anti-national forces like Bimal Gurung who have close links with the Maoists, North East insurgents shouldn’t be allowed to operate anymore.
Image Credits: ANI News
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