File photo of GJM chief Bimal Gurung

DARJEELING/SILIGURI: The Bengal government on Thursday slapped murder charges on Bimal Gurung and his wife, Asha, stepping up the heat on the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha .

The government move came a day before all the GJM’s Gorkhaland Territorial Authority sabhasads would be submitting their resignation to Gurung, who is the GTA chief executive officer. Gurung, in turn, will put in his papers to the GTA secretary on Saturday.

But the government’s dual plan — to go after Gurung and isolate him politically by engaging other Hills stakeholders in conversation — did not yield the desired results on Thursday when 13 of the 15 development board representatives failed to turn up for its peace initiative in Siliguri; Hills parties had made it clear they were not going to be a party to these talks. The CPM, BJP and the Congress, too, stayed away from the meeting.

State parliamentary minister Partha Chatterjee highlighted the depleting food stock and the non-payment of daily wages as examples of hardship being foisted on the Hills people by the GJMsponsored indefinite bandh.

“Schools are being torched, an ITI building has been pulled down. I have been told that animals in the Darjeeling zoo are starving,” Chatterjee said after the peace meeting held at the State Guest House in Siliguri.

He also referred to the problems of about 4,000 new recruits for Hills schools who are not being able to join duty. “About 4,000 schoolteachers from the Hills have come to me, saying they are unable to join work. The CM has given them permanent jobs. The Hills parties, too, have a responsibility to them,” Chatterjee said.

Replying to a question on the Hills parties’ demand for withdrawal of forces as a precondition to joining peace talks with the state government, state home secretary Malay De said: “The government is committed to restoring peace and order without any preconditions. We have our doors open for dialogue.

We are committed to take the peace initiative forward. At the same time, the government can’t abdicate its constitutional duty to maintain order. We will take stock of the situation and take decisions accordingly.”

The GJM responded to the government’s murder charges on its president and his wife by bringing up the “the death of three GJM supporters in police firing” (the government has denied police firing). GJM assistant general secretary Binay Tamang was said it was “surprising” that cases had been initiated against people “who were not present at the scene”. “Three of our supporters were killed. Two are still critical. Thirty-three others were injured. We have the video footage based on which we demanded a judicial inquiry,” Tamang said.

