Darjeeling hills may face yet another spell of uncertainty after Assembly election

SILIGURI: Post state assembly election political scenario is likely to get tougher for the Gorkha Janamukti Morcha(GJM), the largest force among those demanding separate statehood for Darjeeling hills in West Bengal. The situation may push the hills towards yet another spell of uncertainty.
The situation can go toughest for GJM if the Left-INC duo comes to power. Historically, GJM could never go cozy with lefts. But INC, though enjoyed electoral gain with GJM's friendship earlier, cannot sacrifice its present anti TMC tie-up with lefts by supporting it.

On the other side, “She is like mother to all,” said GJM chief Bimal Gurung about TMC supremo Mamata Bannerjee after she formed Gorkha Teritorial Administration, as Gurung demanded, immediately after coming to power in 2011. There were many other tactical steps of Mamata to make GJM feel too close to TMC. But those could not get GJM a single step closer to its prime demand of separate state. The prime sentiment of common mass of hills. Naturally the friendship did not last for long.

GJM is at present under strong electoral tie up with BJP. “Our party is always highly sympathetic to the sentiment of hills,” said top BJP leader and MP from Darjeeling S. S. Ahluwalia. But BJP did not express its support to Gorkhaland statehood in its Assembly Election 2016 vision document for West Bengal or its 2014 Loksabha election manifesto.

“It is difficult backing up Gorkhaland movement straightaway as around 95% of the state populace is against this,” accepted a senior BJP leader. Clear enough, BJP cannot offer any state level legislative or political support for formation of Gorkhaland.

Finally, though still the largest one, GJM is no more the unquestionably term dictating political entity in hills. Its repeated failure in showing any practical development towards new state formation has caused serious erosion in its supportbase making its rivals healthy.

Naturally, “Now, with no friend in front to follow and threats of rivals from behind, GJM is literally cornered. But the other political bodies, surviving on the same demand, are also not in a position to show any bright ray of hope to the common mass of hills living with the dream of a separate statehood there,” said political analysts.