statesman news service
SILIGURI/DARJEELING, 15 APRIL: The Darjeeling district CPI-M will lodge a "formal" complaint with the Election Commission against the Hills police for their alleged reluctance to extend help to the CPI-M leader, Mr Sitaram Yechury.
The state urban development minister, Mr Asok Bhattacharya, said: “Mr Yechury was stranded for five hours in the Hills yesterday. Police were reluctant to clear the road as GJMM activists were campaigning.”
“We would lodge a formal complaint with the EC against police. Mr Yechury could not attend party programmes. We fear that the atmosphere in the Hills is not safe. The GJMM continues to threaten people in the remote areas to vote for them,” said Mr Bhattacharya.
The CPI-M state committee leader, Mr Jibesh Sarkar, said: “The anti-GJMM candidates will win in the three Assembly seats if the EC can conduct free and fair poll in the Hills.”
Mr Sarkar also said that a section of election officials were proactive to assist the anti-Left political organisation. Mr Sarkar criticised the election officials for issuing a ‘show-cause’ notice to the CPI-M candidate for Siliguri, Mr Asok Bhattacharya, for the alleged distribution of voters’ slips with party symbols.
Protesting against the role of election officials, the Darjeeling district CPI-M had to seek a clarification from the Election Commission.
The officer on special duty, Mr NK Sahana, has informed the Darjeeling district secretary that there was no restriction in the distribution of voters’ slips by political parties if it contains only electoral information.
In a letter to the party, which was issued on 13 April, Mr Sahana maintained: “If the name of the contesting candidate, symbol of the party and its name are shown in the counterfoil tagged with voters’ slip it would be treated as campaign material and the publisher's name is a must. Such a slip should not be distributed within 48 hours before the poll."
GJMM, AIGL and GNLF hold public meetings
Meanwhile, the GJMM, AIGL and GNLF held back-to-back public meetings. The time of the meetings of GJMM and AIGL clashed with each other, while the GNLF meeting in the main town of Darjeeling took place after the meetings of the other two.
Making his influence felt in the Hills, GNLF supremo Mr Subash Ghisingh threatened that his party would take the law into its own hands if the administration failed to act properly. The president of the GJMM, Mr Bimal Gurung, warned Mr Ghisingh to leave the Hills after the election. Aware of a possible violence in the Hills after the election, he said: “I know that the Darjeeling police is not that efficient when it comes to handling law and order situation.
Mr Gurung, while addressing thousands of his supporters outside the Old Super Market in Darjeeling today, said that some “insects” (read Mr Ghisingh) are trying to disrupt the peaceful environment in the Hills.
Mr Ghisingh, who has Z-category protection chose to walk from NP Road to Chowk Bazar (the place where Mr Ghisingh delivered his speech today). Starting the “blame game” the GJMM and GNLF also accused each other of spoiling the future of the Hills, though Mr Ghisingh stated that the New Gorkha Hill Council (NGHC) under the Sixth Schedule will be the best for the Hills.
Asserting that the GNLF will “win” even if they lose the election this time and that the Hills will turn green again (the colour of his party flag), Mr Ghisingh said: “Election is not the main priority, electing three representatives in the state Assembly is futile, whatever the state government is capable of giving has already been given, the state government can give nothing more, now it is up to the Centre to pass the Bill on NGHC and implement it in the Hills, besides if my party wins any seat in this election then my party might support whichever party that comes to power be it Trinamul Congress or the Left Front.”
Mr Gurung once again iterated that the interim council is a closed chapter and that the GJMM will only raise the demand for statehood in future. Referring to the murder of Madan Tamang for the first time after he was killed in broad daylight on 21 May, 2010, Mr Ghisingh said that since the Central Bureau of Investigation is probing the matter, it would be unwise to comment on it but the Hill people should not kill their own brothers and quarrel among themselves but fight Kolkata and the Centre.
Though Mr Ghisingh had slammed down the Gorkhaland demand earlier, in Mirik` today he stated that if the people are not satisfied with the New Gorkha Hill Council after it is implemented then his party can always ask for statehood.
SILIGURI/DARJEELING, 15 APRIL: The Darjeeling district CPI-M will lodge a "formal" complaint with the Election Commission against the Hills police for their alleged reluctance to extend help to the CPI-M leader, Mr Sitaram Yechury.
The state urban development minister, Mr Asok Bhattacharya, said: “Mr Yechury was stranded for five hours in the Hills yesterday. Police were reluctant to clear the road as GJMM activists were campaigning.”
“We would lodge a formal complaint with the EC against police. Mr Yechury could not attend party programmes. We fear that the atmosphere in the Hills is not safe. The GJMM continues to threaten people in the remote areas to vote for them,” said Mr Bhattacharya.
The CPI-M state committee leader, Mr Jibesh Sarkar, said: “The anti-GJMM candidates will win in the three Assembly seats if the EC can conduct free and fair poll in the Hills.”
Mr Sarkar also said that a section of election officials were proactive to assist the anti-Left political organisation. Mr Sarkar criticised the election officials for issuing a ‘show-cause’ notice to the CPI-M candidate for Siliguri, Mr Asok Bhattacharya, for the alleged distribution of voters’ slips with party symbols.
Protesting against the role of election officials, the Darjeeling district CPI-M had to seek a clarification from the Election Commission.
The officer on special duty, Mr NK Sahana, has informed the Darjeeling district secretary that there was no restriction in the distribution of voters’ slips by political parties if it contains only electoral information.
In a letter to the party, which was issued on 13 April, Mr Sahana maintained: “If the name of the contesting candidate, symbol of the party and its name are shown in the counterfoil tagged with voters’ slip it would be treated as campaign material and the publisher's name is a must. Such a slip should not be distributed within 48 hours before the poll."
GJMM, AIGL and GNLF hold public meetings
Meanwhile, the GJMM, AIGL and GNLF held back-to-back public meetings. The time of the meetings of GJMM and AIGL clashed with each other, while the GNLF meeting in the main town of Darjeeling took place after the meetings of the other two.
Making his influence felt in the Hills, GNLF supremo Mr Subash Ghisingh threatened that his party would take the law into its own hands if the administration failed to act properly. The president of the GJMM, Mr Bimal Gurung, warned Mr Ghisingh to leave the Hills after the election. Aware of a possible violence in the Hills after the election, he said: “I know that the Darjeeling police is not that efficient when it comes to handling law and order situation.
Mr Gurung, while addressing thousands of his supporters outside the Old Super Market in Darjeeling today, said that some “insects” (read Mr Ghisingh) are trying to disrupt the peaceful environment in the Hills.
Mr Ghisingh, who has Z-category protection chose to walk from NP Road to Chowk Bazar (the place where Mr Ghisingh delivered his speech today). Starting the “blame game” the GJMM and GNLF also accused each other of spoiling the future of the Hills, though Mr Ghisingh stated that the New Gorkha Hill Council (NGHC) under the Sixth Schedule will be the best for the Hills.
Asserting that the GNLF will “win” even if they lose the election this time and that the Hills will turn green again (the colour of his party flag), Mr Ghisingh said: “Election is not the main priority, electing three representatives in the state Assembly is futile, whatever the state government is capable of giving has already been given, the state government can give nothing more, now it is up to the Centre to pass the Bill on NGHC and implement it in the Hills, besides if my party wins any seat in this election then my party might support whichever party that comes to power be it Trinamul Congress or the Left Front.”
Mr Gurung once again iterated that the interim council is a closed chapter and that the GJMM will only raise the demand for statehood in future. Referring to the murder of Madan Tamang for the first time after he was killed in broad daylight on 21 May, 2010, Mr Ghisingh said that since the Central Bureau of Investigation is probing the matter, it would be unwise to comment on it but the Hill people should not kill their own brothers and quarrel among themselves but fight Kolkata and the Centre.
Though Mr Ghisingh had slammed down the Gorkhaland demand earlier, in Mirik` today he stated that if the people are not satisfied with the New Gorkha Hill Council after it is implemented then his party can always ask for statehood.
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