Speculation on Ghisingh’s attendance on F-day rises high in Hills

NBS Times Report

Darjeeling March 29: At a time when the GJM-TMC relationship is on war footing in the political spectrum of the hills, speculations are running high in the circuit that the Gorkha National Liberation Front (GNLF) chief Subash Ghisingh might attend the foundation day celebration on April 5. Party sources today choose to keep the news of Ghisingh’s arrival to the hills as a confidential but added that the decision would be taken in the final hours to avoid any untoward hassles on that very day.

“Whether he will attend the meet will be decided in the final hours. In anyways we would want to keep such things confidential. We do not want any turmoil in the hills on that very day,” said Man Hang, a GNLF leader. The GNLF thriving to gain its political grip in the hills after its leader Subash Ghisingh was hounded out from the hills in 2007 has decided to celebrate its 32^nd foundation day across the hills. Ghisingh in his political career has always taken decisions in the last minute and party cadres this time too have been expecting the same.

Ghisingh after leaving the hills has only entered his former bastion once during the last state assembly election when he fielded candidates in all the three hill subdivision but failed to win even a single seat. The Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) that now has grip of the hills in the past has repeatedly barred the entry Ghisingh from entering the hills. The administration fearing law and order problem has several times has not permitted public rallies of GNLF.

Observers however believe that Ghisingh’s entry and successful celebration of the foundation day can be a major blow to the GJM at a time when it has been sharing a bitter relationship with Mamata Bannerjee lead Trinamool Congress that is in charge of the state government. “But given the struggle the GNLF has been doing for its political existence in the hills specifically Ghisingh has remained silent it would be an uphill task at the moment for the green party. The GJM however looks like it will gun down all possible ways to foil the GNLF programme,” said an observer.

The GNLF will hold its programme in places like Simulbarie, Sukna and Mirik in the Kurseong Subdivision and Barbattey, Chongtong, Bijanbari and Pulbazaar in the Darjeeling Subdivision.