Binay Tamang, the chairperson of the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration, now controls the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha in the Darjeeling hills. He is backing the Trinamool Congress candidate, Amar Singh Rai, on the Lok Sabha seat. In an interview with The Hindu , he said the people of Darjeeling have seen through the “lies of the BJP” and don’t want any more unrest in the hills. Excerpts:
The BJP manifesto calls for a “permanent solution to the problems of Darjeeling hills”. Has it come as a challenge to you since you are supporting the Trinamool candidate?
The BJP manifesto in 2009 and 2014 also had similar claims on resolving the Darjeeling issue. But the party has done nothing in the last 10 years. Between 2014 and 2019, when the BJP had a clear majority [at the Centre], it remained silent on the issue. In fact, the BJP MP [S.S. Ahluwalia] did not even turn up when the hills were on the boil. A single word of sympathy was not heard from any BJP leader. I was part of a number of delegations that met senior BJP leaders, including the Union Home Minister [Rajnath Singh], but they did not set up a single committee on the issue. This [2019] manifesto is another lie by the BJP to fool the Gorkhas in the hills.
You have been the GTA chairperson for almost one and a half years now. What development work have you started?
We have initiated a lot of development works which are primarily concentrated in the rural areas. We are focusing on connectivity, ensuring drinking water supply and setting up schools. Darjeeling had missed out on development for 30 years. In the past one and half years, projects worth ₹1,000 crore have been started by the GTA and the State government. If we continue to work like this for several years, we can change the picture of Darjeeling.
Over the past few decades, Darjeeling has faced several rounds of unrest over the demand for a separate State of Gorkhaland. The longest was the 104-day-long strike in the hills between June and September 2017. The result of all these protests over several years has only been destruction. Whether it is a war between two countries or communities, nobody has benefited from it. The most important thing that needs to be ensured for the well-being of the people of Darjeeling is peace and stability in the region. People will vote for peace and stability in the Darjeeling hills.
In the past one and a half years, there has been no unrest in the hills. I have ensured that Darjeeling remains a strike-free zone. The emotional thing [about Gorkhaland] is there. It is not easy to defuse these emotions. We made the people understand that they will have to think rationally without giving in to their emotions.
Has the issue of Gorkhaland taken a back seat in the ongoing polls?
The issue of separate state of Gorkhaland is there but in reality it is not a possibility at this juncture. Experts point out that the India-Nepal Treaty [of Peace and Friendship], 1950, which allows for free movement of citizens in each other’s territory, is coming in the way of realisation of a separate state for Gorkhas. One of the issues which we had raised in the meeting at the Brigade Parade Ground [on January 19], when representatives of 22 parties were present, was that the treaty needs to be scrapped. If a third front government comes to power, we will scrap the bilateral agreement.
There are talks about GJM founder Bimal Gurung returning to the hills. Will it make any difference to the polls or to the politics in the hills in the times to come?
The first thing is that he will not come as he is wanted in so many cases. Even if he comes back, it would hardly make any difference. The people of the hills do not want any more unrest.
