<div dir="ltr"><div class="gmail-story-article__hero"><div class="gmail-story-article__hero__image" style="background-image:url("//quintype-01.imgix.net/thequint%2F2017-06%2Fbbbcb481-c3e0-4f9c-abee-077b825b9995%2Fa01ffd03-e512-4e06-84a1-3d3f0ca4ffdb.jpg?rect=0%2C36%2C1024%2C341\000026q=35\000026auto=format%2Ccompress\000026w=1280")"><div class="gmail-story-article__hero__image__caption gmail-container"><div class="gmail-story-article__hero__image__caption--text"><span class="gmail-merriweather-bold">Through
much of 2017, the picturesque Darjeeling Hills – once a dreamy tourist
gateway – simmered with violence over the revived demand for a separate
Gorkhaland state.</span><span class="gmail-merriweather-bold gmail-attribution">(Photo: PTI)</span></div></div></div></div><div class="gmail-story-article__body__left__top"><div class="gmail-story-article__body__left__top__headline"><h1 class="gmail-merriweathersans-bold">The Darjeeling Hills Simmered, Centring on The Gorkhaland Movement</h1></div><div class="gmail-story-article__body__left__top__byline"><div class="gmail-story-article__body__left__top__byline__left"><span class="gmail-story-article__body__left__top__byline__left--authors"><a class="gmail-merriweather-bold" href="https://www.thequint.com/author/186994/milinda-ghosh-roy">Milinda Ghosh Roy</a></span><time class="gmail-published-at gmail-timestamp gmail-merriweather-bold">15H 04M AGO</time></div><div class="gmail-story-article__body__left__top__byline__right"><span><a class="gmail-merriweather-bold" href="https://www.thequint.com/news/india">India</a></span><time class="gmail-timestamp gmail-merriweather-reg">4 min read</time></div></div></div><div><div class="gmail-story-article__body__left__social-share"><span class="gmail-story-article__body__left__social-share--text gmail-merriweather-reg">1.5k ENGAGEMENT</span><ul class="gmail-story-article__body__left__social-share--lists"><li><br></li><li><br></li><li><br></li><li><br></li><li><br></li><li><br></li><li class="gmail-"><a><span class="gmail-story-share__comment-icon"></span><span class="gmail-fa-comment-text gmail-merriweather-reg">0</span></a></li></ul></div></div><div class="gmail-story-card" id="gmail-0ba3d4ee-ff8e-4edf-a2d7-022568006c95"><div><div><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element"><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element--text"><p>Through
much of 2017, the picturesque Darjeeling Hills – once a dreamy tourist
gateway – simmered with violence over the revived demand for a separate
Gorkhaland state.</p><p>The agitation that started against the alleged
imposition of Bengali language on the locals, snowballed into an intense
movement for statehood, triggering widespread arson and vandalism,
massive clashes, multiple casualties, political blame games, and the
longest-ever shutdown of 104 days that brought the entire northern West
Bengal hills to a standstill.</p></div></div></div><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element gmail-story-article__content__element--text"><div> <div class="gmail-adunitContainer"> </div> </div></div></div></div><div class="gmail-story-card" id="gmail-7f5d61a0-c127-48c8-8e58-e65b10003470"><div><div><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element"><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element--text"><h2>The Rise And Fall Of Mamata Banerjee In Darjeeling</h2></div></div><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element"><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element--text"><p>During
the May civic body polls, Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM), the leading
political force in the hills for over a decade, retained its supremacy
by winning the Darjeeling, Kalimpong and Kurseong municipalities, but
suffered a crushing defeat in Mirik Notified Area, where the Trinamool
Congress (TMC) gained a two-thirds majority. The Trinamool also
significantly upped its vote share in Darjeeling, Kalimpong and
Kurseong.</p></div></div><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element"><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element--blurb"><blockquote><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element--blurb--quote gmail-blockquote-typo gmail-merriweather-reg"><blockquote>Elated
with her party making inroads in the region, West Bengal Chief Minister
and Trinamool supremo Mamata Banerjee called it the beginning of a new
era.</blockquote></div><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element__share"><ul><li><br></li><li><br></li></ul></div></blockquote></div></div><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element"><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element--text"><p>However,
her jubilation soon turned to concern as the Gorkha locals hit the
streets in early June against the West Bengal government's
three-language policy in the state schools and accused it of imposing
Bengali on them.</p></div></div><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element"><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element--text gmail-deqoded-also-read"><p><strong>Also Read: </strong><a href="https://www.thequint.com/voices/opinion/why-there-is-no-separate-state-of-gorkhaland">Five Reasons Why A Separate State of Gorkhaland is Not A Reality </a></p></div></div></div></div></div><div class="gmail-story-card" id="gmail-7549ca31-7931-4afb-862b-658cbb66a286"><div><div><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element"><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element--text"><p>Banerjee,
in turn, accused the GJM of spreading lies to divide the Bengali and
Nepali communities and vowed to take action against the board members of
the GJM-run hill development body, Gorkhaland Territorial
Administration (GTA), if a special audit ordered by her government
unearthed financial irregularities.</p></div></div><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element"><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element--blurb"><blockquote><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element--blurb--quote gmail-blockquote-typo gmail-merriweather-reg"><blockquote>The
very next day, GJM activists burnt the Chief Minister’s effigies and
rallied, demanding the state government publish a written circular about
not making Bengali compulsory in the hills.</blockquote></div><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element__share"><ul><li><br></li><li><br></li></ul></div></blockquote></div></div><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element"><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element--text"><p>Violence
erupted in the heart of Darjeeling on 8 June, the day the state cabinet
held its first meeting there in 45 years, when hundreds of GJM
activists went on a rampage, breaking police barricades, pelting stones
and torching a police outpost. By evening, the army had to be called in
to stop the situation from spiralling out of control.</p></div></div><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element"><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element--text gmail-deqoded-also-read"><p><strong>Also Read: </strong><a href="https://www.thequint.com/news/india/gorkhaland-stir-post-bandh-who-will-the-centre-mamata-talk-to-gurung-or-tamang">Gorkhaland Stir: Who Will Centre, Mamata Talk to Post Bandh?</a></p></div></div></div></div></div><div class="gmail-story-card" id="gmail-1391f052-ede1-471b-8806-ffec00c817aa"><div><div><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element"><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element--text"><h2>The Era Of Destruction</h2></div></div><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element"><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element--text"><p>The
GJM called a 12-hour shutdown in the hills, complaining of police
atrocities on their workers, even as nearly 4,500 tourists were stranded
in different parts of Darjeeling and Kalimpong. Within two days of the
strike, the GJM called an indefinite shutdown from 12 June.</p></div></div><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element"><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element--text"><p>As
the shutdown started, pro-Gorkhaland rallies, picketing, vandalism in
government offices, and clashes between the agitators and security
forces became regular happenings. The situation deteriorated after three
local activists were killed during clashes with police in Darjeeling
and Sonada on 7 July. The incensed locals held the state administration
responsible for the deaths, and resorted to widespread violence and
arson that compelled the government to deploy the army – the second time
in exactly a month.</p></div></div><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element"><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element--text gmail-deqoded-also-read"><p><strong>Also Read: </strong><a href="https://www.thequint.com/videos/news-videos/bimal-gurung-calls-off-gorkhaland-darjeeling-strike">GJM’s Bimal Gurung Calls Off Gorkhaland Strike, Weathers Backlash</a></p></div></div></div></div></div><div class="gmail-story-card" id="gmail-affb3298-f583-42be-8125-c284c2388e76"><div><div><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element"><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element--text"><p>The
constant police raids at several GJM leaders' residences, including
party chief Gurung, further infuriated the hill parties. Setting aside
their differences with GJM, prominent hill outfits like the Gorkha
National Liberation Front (GNLF) and the Jana Andolan Party (JAP)
supported the cause of Gorkhaland.</p></div></div><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element"><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element--blurb"><blockquote><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element--blurb--quote gmail-blockquote-typo gmail-merriweather-reg"><blockquote>By the first month of the indefinite shutdown, thousands participated in pro-Gorkhaland rallies every day. </blockquote></div><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element__share"><ul><li><br></li><li><br></li></ul></div></blockquote></div></div><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element"><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element--text"><p>The
GJM announced a fast-unto-death while several Gorkha intellectuals,
including singers, filmmakers and poets registered their protest by
returning awards received from state government.</p></div></div><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element"><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element--blurb"><blockquote><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element--blurb--quote gmail-blockquote-typo gmail-merriweather-reg"><blockquote>On
19 August, two separate bomb blasts within 24 hours in Darjeeling and
Kalimpong rocked the hills. One civic volunteer was killed while two
security personnel were injured in the Kalimpong explosion.</blockquote></div><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element__share"><ul><li><br></li><li><br></li></ul></div></blockquote></div></div><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element"><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element--text gmail-deqoded-also-read"><p><strong>Also Read: </strong><a href="https://www.thequint.com/news/india/gorkhaland-gjm-bimal-gurung-chief">Gorkhaland Agitation: Arrest Warant Issued For GJM Chief, 7 Others</a></p></div></div></div></div></div><div class="gmail-story-card" id="e8aff785-93ad-43fa-96c7-8b6fe3a863ab"><div><div><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element"><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element--text"><p>The
police raids were intensified and a lookout notice was issued against
Gurung and his associates under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention)
Act, forcing him to abscond.</p><p>The West Bengal government's attempt
to call truce with the agitators was futile as all the prominent hill
outfits and opposition political parties boycotted the first two
state-convened all-party meetings and formed the Gorkhaland Movement
Coordination Committee to supervise the agitation.</p></div></div><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element"><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element--blurb"><blockquote><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element--blurb--quote gmail-blockquote-typo gmail-merriweather-reg"><blockquote>However,
as the shutdown continued without any positive outcome for the
Gorkhaland demand, cracks emerged within the hill parties and even among
the GJM leadership.</blockquote></div><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element__share"><ul><li><br></li><li><br></li></ul></div></blockquote></div></div><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element"><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element--text"><p>The
JAP openly questioned the relevance of the shutdown while the GNLF said
it was ready to discuss the Gorkhaland issue with the state government,
defying GJM's decision that only tripartite talks between the Centre,
the state and hill parties would be allowed.</p></div></div><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element"><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element--text gmail-deqoded-also-read"><p><strong>Also Read: </strong><a href="https://www.thequint.com/news/politics/cracks-in-gorkhaland-unity-as-hill-parties-question-gjm-leadership">Cracks in Gorkhaland Unity as Hill Parties Question GJM Leadership</a></p></div></div></div></div></div><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element"><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element--text"><p>But
the GJM infighting came out in the open after its general secretary,
Binay Tamang, and leader Anit Thapa were ousted from the party for
announcing a partial withdrawal of the shutdown. The leaders, however,
called the expulsion "unconstitutional" and, with Gurung still in
hiding, strengthened their hold on the party.</p></div></div><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element"><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element--blurb"><blockquote><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element--blurb--quote gmail-blockquote-typo gmail-merriweather-reg"><blockquote>Seizing
the opportunity, Banerjee announced sops for people of the hills and
appointed Tamang as the head of the Board of Administrators for carrying
out development activities in the hills. </blockquote></div><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element__share"><ul><li><br></li><li><br></li></ul></div></blockquote></div></div><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element"><div class="gmail-story-article__content__element--text"><p>After
a series of seemingly "positive talks" between the two parties and an
appeal from Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh, the shutdown was called
off after 104 days.</p><p>As the year draws to a close, an uneasy calm
prevails in the hills, with police on the hunt for Gurung, who continues
to send chilling audio messages from his hideout.</p></div></div><br clear="all"><br>-- <br><div class="gmail_signature">=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+<br><br> Harold F. Schiffman<br><br>Professor Emeritus of <br> Dravidian Linguistics and Culture <br>Dept. of South Asia Studies <br>University of Pennsylvania<br>Philadelphia, PA 19104-6305<br><br>Phone: (215) 898-7475<br>Fax: (215) 573-2138 <br><br>Email: <a href="mailto:haroldfs@gmail.com" target="_blank">haroldfs@gmail.com</a><br><a href="http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/~haroldfs/" target="_blank">http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/~haroldfs/</a> <br><br>-------------------------------------------------</div>
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