STATUE OF DAMBER SINGH GURUNG FOUNDER OF GORKHA LEAGUE ONE OF THE OLDEST REGIONAL POLITICAL PARTY NOW HEADED BY MADAN TAMANG REINSTALLED IN DAMBER CHOWK KALIMPONG BY GJMM THE PARTY SPEARHEADING ITS DEMAND FOR GORKHALAND, A SEPARATE STATE OUTSIDE THE PRESENT STATE OF WEST BENGAL BUT WITHIN THE COUNTRY. THIS STATUE WAS DESTROYED BY GNLF DURING ITS AGITATIONAL PERIOD OF GORKHALAND DURING 1986-88 .

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Ex-GNLF leader’s car burnt at night- Morcha accused of arson and ransack The WagonR that was burnt down by the mob on Thursday night.(Before)I.N Pradhan and the ransacked house. Pictures by Vivek Singh TT, Kurseong, Sept. 11: The house of a former DGHC councillor was ransacked and his car set on fire last night allegedly by a mob led by two Gorkha Janmukti Morcha leaders even as party president Bimal Gurung claimed that efforts were on to maintain peace in the hills. The former councillor, I.N. Pradhan, was the Kurseong branch president of the GNLF before he quit the party last year. Around 8.30pm, two Morcha leaders — Bobby Pradhan, a central committee member, and Suprem Chettri — called Pradhan out of his house at Ghayabari, 15km from here. “When I came out, they started accusing me of attending a GNLF meeting at Longview area some days ago. I told them to show me authentic proof of my attending the meeting. A few minutes later, they went away threatening to return with more supporters,” Pradhan told journalists today. Pradhan reportedly called up the subdivisional police officer (SDPO) seeking protection. “The Morcha duo had returned with some 20 supporters around 9:30pm and started throwing stones at my house. They first broke the windowpanes, then broke open the garage and brought out my WagonR (WB 66 3322) and set it on fire. They had fled by the time police arrived. ” Pradhan and his wife Deepa had by then locked themselves inside the house. The former councillor filed an FIR with Kurseong police naming Bobby and Suprem as the main accused. Pradhan denied having attended the Longview meeting. “I had resigned from the GNLF on July 27 last year. On September 7, I had been to Siliguri to buy vegetables in the evening. If they (the Morcha) prove (that I attended the meeting), I promise that I will leave the hills within 12 hours. When I don’t have links with the GNLF why should I attend the meeting?” The SDPO of Kurseong, Rakesh Singh, confirmed that an FIR had been filed. “We are investigating the incident. No one has been arrested so far,” he said. The Morcha, however, refused comment on the attack. “I am going to Ghayabari to investigate the incident. I will be able to speak on this matter only after I come back,” said Kamal Thapa, the vice-president of the party’s Kurseong unit, over the phone around 3pm. The media and publicity secretary of the Morcha, Rohit Sharma, said he was busy attending a meeting. The arson in the hills continues even as Gurung said on September 6 that while chalking out fresh agitation plans, he had kept in mind the “Centre’s request to maintain peace”. Last year, on September 7, the Maruti car of Rajen Mukhia, a former GNLF leader, was set on fire allegedly by Morcha supporters in front of his house at Panighata in Mirik. Morcha supporters had also occupied the sprawling bungalow of GNLF leader Dawa Pakhrin in Kalimpong on August 22 last year, planting flags atop the building and its main gate. The residence of former civic chief of Kalimpong C.K. Kumai had been ransacked and Maurice Kalikotey’s house torched as Morcha supporters went on the rampage following the death of one of its supporters in Darjeeling on July 25, 2008. The bullet that killed Pramila Sharma had been allegedly fired from the house of Deepak Gurung, the Darjeeling branch committee president of the GNLF. The Morcha took over GNLF chief Subash Ghisingh’s two-storeyed house at his native village in Manju Tea Estate, around 15km from Mirik, and converted it into a unit office on July 29 last year. GNLF leader’s house ransacked, vehicle set on fire SNS,KURSEONG, 11 SEPT: GJMM supporters allegedly ransacked former DGHC councillor and GNLF leader Mr IN Pradhan’s house and set his vehicle bearing registration number WB 66/3322 on fire at Ghayabari in Kurseong sub-division last night in presence of police officials. Tow fire tenders from Kurseong were used to bring the fire under control. Mr Pradhan today said two Tindharia based GJMM central committee youth leaders Bobby Pradhan and Supreme Chettri came to his house at around 8:30 p.m. and accused me of attending a GNLF meeting at Longview. “When I denied they abused me and went back only to return with 16 men around 9:30 p.m. and started to throw stones at my house. They ransacked my garage, brought out my vehicle and set it on fire in presence of five policemen who had been deployed at my house as security guards. Police personnel were also hurt in the incident,” Mr Pradhan said. Mr Pradhan has lodged an FIR at the Kurseong police station against GJMM supporters Bobby Pradhan, Supreme Chettri, Uday Chettri, Deep Sanyasi, Raju Chettri and others. According to Mr Pradhan, he has resigned from the GNLF on 27 July 2008. Confirming the FIR, the Kurseong SDPO, Mr Rakesh Singh said no one has been arrested till now. “Rapid Action Force has been deployed in front of Mr Pradhan's house,” he added. Casual staff on fast from Monday TT, Darjeeling, Sept. 11: The DGHC is likely to come to a standstill with 8,000 contractual workers deciding to start a mass hunger strike indefinitely across the hills from Monday to demand regularisation of their jobs. Machendra Subba, the president of Janmukti Asthai Karmachari Sangathan of which the contractual workers are members, said: “On June 9, the state government had promised us that the process of regularisation would be started in three months and during the interim period, our salaries would be increased. With the three-month period over, we have decided to take this extreme step.” The contractual workers have been in service for the past 21 years and draw a monthly salary ranging from Rs 2,000 to Rs 5,000. The hunger strike will be organised in front of the district magistrate’s office, the Lewis Jubilee Complex, the DGHC administrative building in Darjeeling, and on the subdivisional office premises in Kalimpong and Kurseong. “One group will also stay at Pintal Village in Siliguri where DGHC administrator, B.L. Meena, usually stays,” said Subba. The Hill Employees’ Association and the Janmukti Karmachari Sangatan have also decided to extend support to the hunger strike. Meena said: “We are still trying our best to solve the issue. I will be leaving for Calcutta on Sunday. At times, government processes do take time.” More Hindi schools in Dooars soon? SNS,JALPAIGURI, 11 SEPT: Agitating for the past five days for more Hindi schools in the Dooars and the Terai and Hindi speaking teachers in such existing schools, the Akhil Bharatiya Adivasi Vikas Parishad may have succeeded in driving home its point. According to the Jalpaiguri district magistrate, Mrs Vandana Yadav, the state school education department has sent the administration a letter stating that the state government would emphasise in setting up more Hindi medium schools in the Dooars and Terai and also stress in recruiting more Hindi speaking teachers in the two areas. “However, the letter also states that it was impossible to fulfill the ABAVP's demand to transfer non-Hindi speaking teachers employed in the schools of the Dooars and the Terai,” the DM, said. The DM added that the district administration has conveyed the school education department's message to the ABAVP leadership. “The administration is also prepared to hold talks with them on the issue but, if the ABAVP continues closing down schools forcefully even now the administration would take action against them,” the DM said. Adivsi students of the Duramari area in Dhupguri today rallied in support of the Akhil Bhartiya Adivasi Vikas Parishad convened indefinite shutdown of schools programme. The police had assisted in reopening the Duramari Chandrakanta High School yesterday along with the Gairkata Girls’ High School. All Duramari and Gairkata schools reopened today without any obstruction from the ABAVP. The schools at Banarhat, Nagrakata and Madarihat continue to remain closed. All schools at Malbazaar remained closed as well. Guardians of the students of the affected schools blocked road at Malbazaar demanding police intervention in the reopening of the schools. Govt feeler to tribals on school strike- Parishad to meet today to decide fate of agitation TT, Sept. 11: The government has sent a letter to the Adivasis agreeing to setting up more Hindi-medium schools in the Dooars, a move that has prompted the tribals to explore the possibility of calling off their indefinite education strike. The additional district magistrate of Siliguri, Jyotishman Chatterjee, who convened a meeting of the Terai unit of the Akhil Bharatiya Adivasi Vikas Parishad to persuade it to withdraw the strike today, said the principal secretary of the school education department had sent a letter to the outfit through the district magistrate (DM) of Jalpaiguri which was “quite positive”. “The state government has conceded to the setting up of more Hindi-medium schools and asked for proposals, upgrading vacancies in these schools and recruiting more teachers in Hindi-mediums,” Chatterjee said. “However, it has not agreed to the Parishad’s demand to recruit only local people in these schools as this goes against an individual’s fundamental right.” Sushil Tirkey, the general-secretary of the Parishad’s Terai unit, admitted to have received the letter from the Jalpaiguri DM. “The Dooars and Terai Coordination Committee will meet tomorrow at Nagrakata to decide on calling off the strike,” he said. The education strike in the Dooars entered its fifth day today. The call has evoked a mixed response with some schools staying closed and others functioning normally. Schools remained shut in Banarhat, Hasimara, Kalchini, Malbazar and Nagrakata. In Birpara and Gayerkata, educational institutions were open. Students of the Hindi-medium schools of Malbazar shut down institutions that have other mediums of instructions. As a result, their counterparts from these schools along with their guardians and teachers blocked NH31. Sadananda Mukherjee, a teacher of Malbazar High School, said: “Today, more than 500 people including students, guardian and teachers blocked NH31 in five places of Malbazar town from 10am to 4pm to demand the opening of the schools. The administration has assured us that the problem will be resolved.” The Parishad has called the strike since Monday demanding recruitment of Hindi-speaking teachers in Hindi-medium schools of the region. On Tuesday, the students and their guardians had blocked NH31C at Gayerkata for nearly five hours. The next day, the students threw stones at a police vehicle after Parishad members allegedly closed the schools there. The same day at Duramari, 20km away, the police fired in the air and burst tear-gas shells to control a clash between the local people and the Adivasis. Yesterday schools were open with police presence in both the places. Lari Bose, the president of the Terai Dooars Nagarik Mancha, a citizens’ forum of the Dooars, said from Alipurduar: “I have spoken to Partha Dey, the school education minister, today to implement the basic education policy under which the medium of a school will be determined by the mother tongue of the majority of the students. Dey also assured me that the schools would open on Monday.” Ailing CM extends vacation in the hills

TT, Siliguri/Calcutta, Sept. 11: Chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee today deferred his return to Calcutta from Mongpong near Siliguri as he was unwell. State urban development minister Asok Bhattacharya said the chief minister was having “breathing problems”. Sources in the chief minister’s secretariat said he was suffering from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), a chest ailment common to smokers which was causing the breathlessness. Bhattacharjee was earlier scheduled to return to the city yesterday so that he could attend the CPM’s state secretariat meeting this morning. “Doctors have advised him rest. They have also told him that it would be better not to smoke. But he is yet to give up the habit,” an official said. Asked whether a medical team from Calcutta was needed at Mongpong, he replied: “The chief minister has gone to north Bengal to take rest as he is not well. If there’s any need to provide better medical treatment, he would be brought back to Calcutta. Why would doctors from Calcutta be sent there?” A three-member team of the Darjeeling district health administration, comprising a doctor and two paramedics, is camping in Mongpong. Subir Bhowmik, the chief medical officer of health of Darjeeling, said the team had not been called for any medical assistance. Asok Bhattacharya said: “As of now, the plans are that the chief minister will return to Calcutta tomorrow.” The CPM leadership said Bhattacharjee was “indisposed both mentally and physically”. “Despite his ill health, he spoke at a rally in Siliguri and his small vacation at Mongpong was planned accordingly. This is why boudi (Mira Bhattacharjee) went along with him,” said a state secretariat member. Since there were no pressing engagements in the city or anything of immediate importance on the agenda of the state secretariat meeting, the chief minister decided to stay on at Mongpong. “He had been advised by doctors a few days’ rest in the hills,” the secretariat member said. Dr Pawan Agarwal, a city-based respiratory medicine specialist, said: “The predominant cause of COPD is smoking.”Agarwal said “reasonably good treatment is available to provide relief to the patient. The first step to controlling COPD is to stop smoking and then one should start exercising.” Doctors suggest a brisk walk and breathing exercises. Bhattacharjee is spending his time at Mongpong mostly indoors, taking rest and reading.