The man behind Darjeeling’s Gorkhaland protests owes his rise to Indian Idol

india

Updated: Jun 17, 2017 11:47 IST

Bimal Gurung, the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) leader blamed for the recent turmoil in West Bengal’s Darjeeling, owes his rise to a TV reality show.

He was a foot-soldier of Subhash Ghising, the leader who spearheaded the violent Gorkha agitation for a separate state in the 1980s, until Prashant Tamang – a Kolkata police constable hailing from the Darjeeling hills – caught popular imagination by qualifying for the last rounds of the Indian Idol song contest.

Gurung helped Tamang’s cause by reaching out to Nepali-speaking residents of Darjeeling and adjoining areas to vote via SMS for Tamang, who ultimately won the 2008 edition of the show.

Nearly a decade later, Tamang has fallen off the radar. But Gurung is still going strong, even though he is on the run after police raided his office as violence erupted over the ‘imposition’ of Bengali language in the hills by chief minister Mamata Banerjee.

Having signed a tripartite agreement with the Centre and the state and settled for an autonomous administrative council instead of full-fledged statehood, just months ago Gurung was faced with the real possibility of losing both the plot and personal popularity. The latest controversy, however, has given him a fresh lifeline.

“He may in hiding for now, but his political future has been secured for the short term,” said a bureaucrat not willing to be named.

Few, in fact, dare to speak aloud about Gurung publicly in the hills. The 53-year-old leader has over the years acquired a fearsome reputation. He once led the dreaded Gorkha Volunteer Corps, the militant wing of Ghising’s Gorkha National Liberation Front (GNLF).

The Corps is suspected to have been behind many killings and kidnappings that marked the Gorkhaland agitation in the 1980s. Gurung first became an elected member of the autonomous council from Chow Bazar of Darjeeling town in 1999 after the murder of the sitting member Rudra Kumar Pradhan.

“He rules by fear,” said a police official who once served in the hills. Ghising had to flee Darjeeling after his bitter fallout with Gurung. Madan Tamang, a prominent Gorkha leader critical of Gurung, was hacked to death in broad daylight in 2012.

The latest turmoil, however, has overshadowed Gurung’s controversial past. With popular sentiment in the hills ranged against the state government, Gurung has once again emerged as the rallying point for local pride.

Still the elected chief executive officer of the autonomous Gorkhaland Territorial Administration, Gurung – the son of a tea garden worker - has now threatened to carry on with the agitation for statehood until it is achieved. “We will not stop,” he is reported to have said before going underground.

.Gorkhaland_wrap {width:auto; border:dashed 2px #999; padding:10px; font-family:"Open Sans"; background-color:#FAF8ED}

.Gorkhaland_headline {width:auto; margin-bottom:5px; text-transform:uppercase; font-size:180%; font-weight:bold; font-family:"PT Serif";}

.Gorkhaland_line {width:auto; border:dotted 1px #999; margin-bottom:3px; margin-top:3px}

.Gorkhaland_space {width:auto; margin:6px}

.Gorkhaland_point ul {width:auto; list-style:url(http://www.hindustantimes.com/static/ht2016/10/bulletbrown1.png); margin:10px; padding-left:11px}

.Gorkhaland_source {width:auto; font-size:85%; color:#666; text-align:right}

.clrboth {clear:both; margin:5px}

.Gorkhaland_box {width:48%; float:left; padding:5px; margin-right:5px; border-right:solid 1px #666;}

.Gorkhaland_box2 {width:48%; float:left; padding:5px}

@media only screen and (max-width:640px) {

.Gorkhaland_box {width:47%; float:left; padding:5px; margin-right:5px; border-right:solid 1px #666;}

.Gorkhaland_box2 {width:47%; float:left; padding:5px}

}

@media only screen and (max-width:400px) {

.Gorkhaland_box {width:auto; float:left; padding:5px; margin-right:0px; border-right:none}

.Gorkhaland_box2 {width:auto; float:left; padding:5px}

}

Gorkhaland Timeline 1907: The demand for a separate administrative unit in Darjeeling is raised for the first time. The Hillmen’s Association of Darjeeling submit a memorandum to Minto-Morley Reforms demanding a separate administrative setup.

1917: The Hillmen’s Association submit a memorandum to the Bengal government and the Viceroy for the creation of a separate administrative unit comprising Darjeeling and Jalpaiguri districts.

1929: Hillmen’s Association again raise the demand before Simon Commission.

1930: Joint petition submitted by Hillmen’s Association, Gorkha Officers Association and the Kurseong Gorkha Library to Government of India demanding separation from the province of Bengal.

1941: The Hillmen’s Association under the presidency of Rup Narayan Sinha urge Government of India to exclude Darjeeling from Bengal and make it a Chief Commissioner’s province.

1947: The undivided Communist Party of India submit memorandum to the Constituent Assembly demanding the formation of Gorkhasthan comprising Darjeeling district and Sikkim.

1952: Akhil Bharatiya Gorkha League (ABGL) president N B Gurung meets Prime Minister Nehru and demandas separation from Bengal.

1980: Pranta Parishad of Darjeeling president Indra Bahadur Rai writes to Prime Minister Indira Gandhi demanding formation of a new state in Darjeeling. The same year, Gorkha National Liberation Front (GNLF) is floated by Subash Ghisingh. 1986: GNLF launches violent agitation for Gorkhaland. The violence claims 1,200 lives.

1988: Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council accord is signed between GNLF, the Left Front government headed by Jyoti Basu and the Centre.

1992: Nepali language included in the 8th Schedule of the Constitution.

2005: MoU signed by the Centre, Left Front government and Ghisingh for special status to the Hills under 6th Schedule status to the Constitution.

2007: Gorkha Janmukti Morcha floated by Bimal Gurung.

2008: Subash Ghisingh ousted from the Hills. Starts living in Jalpaiguri town.

2010: All India Gorkha League leader Madan Tamang murdered in Darjeeling. He supported creation of Gorkhaland but was opposed to Bimal Gurung.

2011: Three GJM supporters die in police firing at Sipchu (Dooars). Violent agitation starts. The Gorkha Territorial Administration (GTA) is formed in the same year.

2012: The first GTA elections take place and GJM sweeps.

2015: Bimal Gurung, chief executive of GTA, charged with murder, conspiracy to murder and rioting with deadly weapons in the Madan Tamang murder case.

2017: Fresh agitation starts in the Hills during Mamata Banerjee’s visit. This time the GJM says making Bengali mandatory in schools is unacceptable.

(Compilation: Tanmay Chatterjee)

With the hills suddenly ablaze, even his rivals have begun to fall in line. Neeraj Zimba, the spokesman of Ghising’s GNLF, has expressed readiness to agitate for separate Gorkhaland under Gurung’s leadership. “We are ready to work under the collective leadership and don’t mind if Bimal Gurung leads the alliance,” Zimba said after a joint meeting of several parties last week. Most parties with a strong footprint in the hills participated in the meeting.

Dr Harka Bahadur Chettri, leader of the pro-Gorkhaland Jan Andolan Party which boycotted the meeting, also lent support to the Gorkhaland cause. Chettri has demanded that Gurung’s GJM extract a pledge from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for a separate state. The BJP has twice won the Darjeeling parliamentary seat with support from the GJM.

Ironically, Gurung finds himself on a strong wicket while on the run. The imposition of Bengali – a misplaced fear since the government has since clarified that it is optional and not compulsory – has allowed him fresh political ammunition. If he is arrested, he will acquire a brighter halo.