Gorkhas call for sacrifice

It was shock. It was shame. It was anger. And it was determination. The mood in the Gorkha camp in the meet on last Sunday at the Gorkha Bhawan in New Delhi was of the need to not let the sacrifice of those killed go in vain. Gorkha Janmukti Morcha national general secretary Roshan Giri called in his address for sustained and peaceful demonstration for Gorkhaland.

A week after his call, Gorkhas have started 45 days demonstration from 28th of February here at the Jantar Mantar in New Delhi. Simultaneously dharnas (peaceful demonstrations) and hunger strikes are being organised in at least 8 sub-divisions of Darjeeling apart from Kolkata, Varanasi and at all other places where Gorkhas are present.

Around two hundred Gorkhas are sitting on dharna from this Monday at the Jantar Mantar in New Delhi. Of them there are Gorkhas who have come from Darjeeling and all across India to express solidarity with the movement.

Priya Diskshit is an English teacher in Darjeeling. When asked about her non-Gorkha name, she said that, “My great grandparents migrated from UP to Darjeeling. Somehow this title crept into but I am a Gorkha.” Why has Priya come all the way from Darjeeling to New Delhi on her own expenses? She says, “West Bengal government never listened to us. I participated in peaceful demonstration back home in Darjeeling but we were met with force. Many of our children were brutally shot dead. So it became necessary to express our demand from other forums.” As her eyes become moist with tears, she adds, “My grandfather was in the army. My brother is in the army. We have fought for this country as anybody else. May be we will not have Gorkhaland now, but our future generations will rest in peace. We are not going to rest before we have it.”
Priya is not alone. The Gorkhas from across the country and cross section of society are in agreement with her.

Kishore Labar, originally from Darjeeling, is associated with Studio 55, an art gallery and has lived in Delhi for the last 13 years. He fell in love with a UP girl, married her and is settled in Delhi. How does he feel now about the demand of Gorkhaland now that he is practically an outsider? “I am not an outsider. I am still a Gorkha and would love to go back whenever I have an opportunity.” How does he feel working in the world of art where there are a number of Bengalis, the community with whom Gorkhas are in a tussle for Gorkhaland? Labar says, “It also applies to the Bengalis. I have some very good Bengali friends. Even they understand our sensibilities. They are not against it.”

Every single Gorkha who is sitting at the dharna has a story and a reason. It’s surprising why India’s oldest struggle for statehood never struck a chord with the policy makers of India.

Role of media

The role of mainstream media has also come under severe criticism from the Gorkhas and their leadership. The national media has been projecting the agitation of Gorkhaland as a violent secessionist movement. The ground reality has been markedly different. Despite sharing borders with the northeast, known for its insurgency movements, and open support from Maoists, the struggle for Gorkhaland has been largely peaceful, constitutional and democratic. “There have occurred sporadic incidents of blockade of roads and railways. Some of us have resorted to violence at times but those have been reactionary rather than deliberate. When West Bengal police resorts to indiscriminate violence, it is natural that some might get agitated. Even under Gandhi , some resorted to revolutionary methods”, said Ranjan Sharma, the media secretary of Gorkha Janmukti Morcha, Delhi.

The fall of Hosni Mubarak in Egypt and success of Maoist in Nepal in uprooting monarchy has been an inspiration for the Gorkhas. As the struggle for Telangana threatens to create a Tehreer Square in Hyderabad, Gorkhas do have the wherewithal to do one in Kolkata.

The story was published on iSikkim.com