Thousands of Gorkhas march from Rajghat to Jantar Mantar

When was the last time you went to participate in a political rally with your entire family?

May be you would have read about the entire family working together for a political cause in books and heard of late in Egypt and Tunisia. But for those demanding Gorkhaland, it comes naturally. Since, for Gorkhas, their identity itself is at stake.

That’s happened for the last 14 days in Delhi, that’s happening in Darjeeling and Kalimpong for months now, and that is going to happen for, may be years in the times to come.

As the Gorkhas’ agitation in Delhi demanding Gorkhaland enters day 15, it has only become more widespread and determined. On Sunday, March 13, 2011 more than a thousand strong Gorkhas, from Delhi, UP, Haryana, Uttarakhand, Darjeeling, Sikkim and as far as Manipur, Nagaland and Assam, participated in the 7 km march from Rajghat to Jantar Mantar. Senior BJP leader and the current Loksabh MP from Darjeeling Jaswant Singh, wife of GJM President Bimal Gurung and Gorkha Janmukti Nari Morcha President Asha Gurung, Delhi Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) leader Uttam Chhetri and Ex MP and President of Bharatiya Gorkha Parisangh Dil Kumari Bhandari were present during the march.

The entire leadership of GJM Delhi including media secretary Ranjan Sharma, GJM Youth wing’s Pankaj Chhetri, Robin Pradhan and Delhi GJM Nari Morcha’s Anu Das apart from others actively participated in mobilizing people for the demonstration.

Today’s march saw huge participation from young Gorkha boys and girls who work in call centers, restaurants and beauty parlors. “For them Sunday doesn’t mean a holiday. Many of them who are here will have to forego a day’s salary. Loss of a day’s earnings is more painful for those whose salary is less”, said Pankaj Chhetri who himself works in a call center. “In a world where money is everything for many of us, they all have come. Many of my friends jeer at me for all this but this is a struggle of our identity.”

After the march reached Jantar Mantar, GJM leaders in their speech repeated their demand for Gorkhaland and CBI enquiry into Sipchu killings. Senior GJM Delhi leader Uttam Chhetri stressed on the need for Gorkhas to keep the struggle on. In his fiery 18 minute speech Mr. Chhetri called Gorkhas to remain united. Uttarakhand Gorkha Janmukti Morcha General Secretary Aashu Lama said in her speech that Gorkhas won’t let Jaswant Singh until their demand for Gorkhaland is fulfilled.

The former Defense Minister and one of the most successful External Affairs Ministers of India, Jaswant Singh said that the demand for Gorkhaland is a just demand and he would serve the cause as long as he lives. When asked that how have things changed since when he first went to Gorkhaland in 1962 as an army officer, Mr. Singh said, “I find a terrible deterioration between 1962 and now. I do charge the Left Front for deliberately neglecting the hill areas of Darjeeling. It is a great pity and a great regret. I believe it’s an act of deliberate omission on the part of Bengal government.”

The above story was published on iSikkim.com

‘Up’Rising China

Why is the ‘peaceful’ rise of the Middle Kingdom a fiercely debated topic?

Beijing’s assertiveness is not simply about its effort to have its rightful place in the world. It’s about establishing military ‘supremacy’, technological ‘superiority’ and economic ‘hegemony’. Interestingly, the dimensions of supremacy, superiority and hegemony do not apply to the Chinese context literally alone per se.

The confusion is not about the rise of China but about what China wants to do with its enhanced status? What will it do with the military, technological and economic might it is furiously trying to acquire?

The jury remains out as far as predicting the Chinese plans are concerned.

Too many questions!

Does China want to settle its borders on its own terms with all its neighbours including India and Japan? Is China simply looking for opportunities to better the lives of its own people? Or will China be happy to have a global role; lending sail for the rest of the world’s economy, politics and resulting conflicts?

The questions are many. But the only answer we get every next time question is a new question.

How responsible China will be, if it is to ever come anywhere close to the USA’s 20th Century global standing? In that case, will China be playing a mediator’s role in conflicts of Israel-Palestine or in its own backyard in the Korean Peninsula? Or will China opt for peaceful ways of resolving its border dispute with India and reconcile its own people in Tibet?
The lone answer China has to all these questions as of now is growth.

It’s a very effective answer in the short term. China has not witnessed any major unrest after the Tiananmen Square massacre in the Chinese heartland. The only reason behind this is the scorching growth it has been able to register. The relentless rise and rise of China has brought millions of people out of poverty in China.

The ideological umbrella

At all points in the history of the world, the rise of a power is almost always accompanied by a new order of values. In case of the USA and the USSR it was capitalism and socialism respectively. Similarly, the rise of Britain and France in the 17th Century came with the idea of democracy, rule of law and Renaissance. These were values which advocated emancipation of humanity.

Though all of these ideals were full of flaws and were selectively implemented to suit national interest, still there was a semblance of values that bind.

What will be the Chinese wisdom for the world? What idea of China will inspire the man sitting at the fence? Probably China needs to be concerned most about such an umbrella of thought that will get it the respect and faith of mankind.

Beyond growth

When China will be the largest economy of the world, which is not far either (According to a PriceWaterhouseCoopers estimate in January this year, China could overtake the United States to become the world’s largest economy as early as 2020), it will have to think of something that will inspire Chinism. It is also true that the Chinese grow for ever at such ferocious pace. But what next? Will growth alone get China or a Chinese the respect of the world community?

We know from Chinese posturing over last decade that now Chinese are ready to explore military options to ensure safety of its business interests. It would happily send its army to secure its oil tankers across the Indian Ocean, if needed. China has been building parliaments in Malawi and Lesotho. China is building ports and roads in Sri Lanka and Pakistan.

If we ignore the strategic angle of these projects for the time being, these are great steps in nation building. But does China see it that way? At present more people seem to be uncomfortable with any similar idea. According to East Asia survey 2008 by East Asia Institute, almost 77 percent people in the developed world are uncomfortable with the idea of China being a leader in Asia. The stats in the developing world and especially China’s neighbouring countries are not very different. Will they be comfortable with China as a world leader?

The inference we can draw is that the rise of China is simply not ‘peaceful’.

Precisely this is what China needs to address.

The story has been published on iSikkim.com

A day with His Holiness the 14th Shamarpa

It was 10 am when we came to know about the 900 years of Karma Kagyu lineage of Tibetan Buddhism’s month long celebrations beginning in New Delhi. One more hour of frantic searching on the internet and a couple of calls to a friend Jigyasa and we got an appointment with none other than H. H. the Shamarpa at 4pm.

I didn’t expect in the beginning that we will have an appointment with H. H. Shamarpa at such a short notice. The Shamarpa lineage is the second oldest reincarnate lineage in Tibetan Buddhism and Karma Kagyu is the largest lineage within the Kagyu School, one of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism. H. H. the 14th Shamarpa is himself one of the most respected figures of international repute.

Until 4 pm, I had a doubt; are we gonna get him? At sharp four we were at the Karmapa International Buddhist Institute (KIBI) in the Qutub Institutional Area, Delhi. Situated amid trees and hillocks, sharing boundaries with some of the best business schools, the KIBI is a peaceful spiritual place visited by faithful people of all religion, across the world.
The KIBI appears a majestic Tibetan style red-yellow-white modern set up with an innate spiritual temperament. The subtle shades and the delicate carvings on the walls with terrace farms like roof tops, the KIBI is a clean place where the men and the animals, the trees and stones, the sensibilities and the spiritualities co-exist.

Entering the main gate, I saw a young white lady sitting in salwar-kameez with a couple of goats on the doorstep of the main hall. I couldn’t talk to her but I had in my mind that the 14th Shamarpa has constantly enunciated his views on animal rights and their humane treatment.
We head towards the lift and then towards the big gallery leading towards the main hall where His Holiness is sitting in his red robe. A unique blend of smile, sense and spirituality, His Holiness welcomes me and my friend Saurabh Sharma with folded hands. My whole self felt a bit embarrassed, a bit enthused but most of all grateful.

A spec of thought came, ‘Shouldn’t His Holiness have blessed us rather than wishing us?’ But as it goes, respect is commanded and not demanded and greatness lies in giving respect to the weakest and the most insignificant. We sat next to His Holiness and had some of the toughest answers and question which were far from the religiosity of the spiritual world.

Some of the answers would rattle many of us for the way we believe the world is. They were not necessary spiritual; rather they were all political for we had gone to do an interview on the Karmapa controversy. And came many controversial answers again which would need a separate column for a critical analysis.

But interaction with H.H Shamar Rinpoche was blissful. The aura was divine and by tying red ribbon across our neck, he blessed us with his divinity.

Cricket, Gambling and India

Gambling has gambled heavily on India. It’s appetite to enter Indian market, over the years, has shown only signs of strengthening. Now it has on its side some of the biggest moguls of Indian industry like Subhash Chandra (Zee) and Vijay Mallya (Kingfisher). Subhash Chandra might be famous as a media biggie but as early as in 2007 he earned almost as much from his lottery brand Playwin as the rest of his media, packaging and real estate businesses added together i.e. a cool Rs. 2400 crore.

According to Playwin website, the company has at least ten games to offer. The lotto & gaming brand of Pan India Network Ltd. claimed in June 2010 to have created 71 crorepatis and over 3,000 lakhpatis from all over India within a short span of 8 years since its establishment. Of course it doesn’t talk about the many people who would have gone bankrupt due to gambling.

But this is the visible picture. According to a story published in the Businessworld in 2008, unlawful betting in the IPL cricket season averaged $100 million per match in 2008. Indians bought over 30 million lotteries a day and the lottery market alone was estimated to be upto Rs 50,000. The total gambling industry was upwards of Rs. 100,000 crore in 2008 itself. There is hardly any doubt that despite all the recessions, the gambling industry has only gone up. Howsoever we frown at the moral aspect of gambling, it remains the most popular vice. That it can’t be stopped is clear. That it be regulated and made legal remains to be tried.

The most recent spate of events has once again highlighted the necessity to legalise it and make its tracking possible. On February 13, 2011, The Guardian reported Indian police being on alert as bookies prepare for betting bonanza duirng the ongoing ICC Cricket World Cup.

Not a week passed and reports came of Indian police arresting nine men related to four cricket betting gangs with laptops and cell phones in Delhi and Mumbai. According to AFP, the gambling gangs took illegal bets during the cricket World Cup to the tune of $620,000.

The difficulty of letting gambling unregulated has serious stakes. Mint reported on February 15, 2011 through Enforcement Directorate officials that at least $US4.36 billion (Rs. 20,000 crore) will be gambled during ICC World Cup in India. On February 15, Mint reported through Reuters that an anonymous gambler has struck an £82,000 pounds ($132,300) bet with a London bookmaker on India winning the Cricket World Cup, one of the biggest ever laid in the one-day game.

While the amount of money is worrying, the bigger concern is its misuse. On September 6, 2010 the Daily Star reported that shady Asian cricket betting rings are directly funding Al-Qaida. In September 2010 itself, a Delhi court hearing an appeal for betting during the last World Cup 2007 suggested legalizing betting in India. Additional sessions judge Dharmesh Sharma remarked that legalising will at least help track transfer of funds and revenue generated can be used for welfare of public.

Judge Dharmesh Sharma said the ‘‘alarming” level of illegal betting in India was financing drug trafficking and terrorism. ICC is also favouring legalising gambling in India, as Sri Lanka has done in recent months.

It might be difficult for many of us to accept gambling as legal but experts suggest that legalizing would reduce the threat of betting becoming match fixing. Given the fact that betting is a closed door affair, it is nearly impossible to completely regulate and monitor and finally prove it in the court.

All of this becomes even dicier when politicians join the party. Former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister and Congress leader Arjun Singh who died recently was blamed for Churhat Lottery scam almost 30 years ago. More recently Pinarayi Vijayan of CPM is an accused in the power graft case and lottery scam in Kerala. In Sikkim, which is the only other state apart from Goa to have legalised gambling, there are unconfirmed reports of some people very close to political parties trying to make money out of gambling. It is for the courts to decide these case but the best advice to law makers in such matters of money would be to ensure transparent accounting.

The article has been published on iSikkim.com

Dharna demanding Gorkhaland enters week 2 in Delhi

What does a hundred and four years old struggle mean to you?

The word ‘104 years old’ in case of we mortals would mean dying or declining. But in the case of Gorkha’s struggle for Gorkhaland and an identity of their own, ‘104 years old’ means a struggle that is rooted into five generations. While there are not many struggles in the world which have survived for more a than hundred years, in case of Gorkhaland, it has not only survived but remains dynamically young. Meet any Gorkha from Darjeeling and they have a story that has descended from their parents and grandparents; a real story of survival, of perseverance, of struggle for identity, of being ignored and at times persecuted.

It’s not spontaneous or reactionary like in Egypt, Libya or Tunisia. It’s a sustained struggle done by people who are as faithful to the idea of India as any other Indian and want recognition for themselves democratically. One of the hundreds who has actively participated in the ongoing 45 days dharna at the Jantar Mantar in New Delhi, 63 years old Vinod Prasad Sharma from Karseong told iSikkim.com on Sunday, “The demand for other states like Telangana, Bundelkhand or Vidarbha is for socio-economic reasons but we want Gorkhaland to have a national identity of our own.”

Mr. Sharma quotes a letter written by Subhash Chandra Bose to Gorkha leader Dambar Singh Gurung in which he supported the demand for Gorkhaland. In the letter written on August 8, 1938, Bose writes to Gurung, “I was very glad to have a discussion with you regarding the grievance of the hill people of Darjeeling. The grievances as mentioned by you are legitimate and it is time for the government to remedy them. As far as Congress party is concerned, we will do our best to remove your grievances. Congress is party of masses and it is our duty to address the grievances of the masses.” Mr. Sharma says, “Our demand was supported by Bose and many other national leaders. This was because of the sacrifice we made for the cause of our nation. Niranjan Chhetri became a martyr for the national cause in 1897. Durga Malla and Dal Bahadur Thapa are some of the famous names among hundreds of others who fought and died in India’s struggle for independence. Almost forty percent of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose’s INA was made up of Gorkhas.” He adds, “We have a history of having fought for the national cause but when India became independent and the issue of resolving Gorkhaland issues came, we were termed anti-national and foreigners.”

Mr. Sharma, a veteran of Gorkhaland struggle was in Congress for 17 years until 1986. He decided to quite Congress thereafter since the Congress was considered the demand for Gorkhaland anti-national and was insensitive to the idea of Gorkha identity. Currently, he is a member of the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha.

Ask the 63 year old Mr. Sharma how long he has been associated with the struggle for Gorkhaland and he says, “It’s has been an issue synonymous with our existence. My father and maternal uncle were freedom fighters. My father was a supporter of Mahatma Gandhi. His father was so active in anti British struggle that he was ousted from home. He was called ‘Harka Bahadur’ (Harka in Nepali means someone who has been chased away). Gorkhaland is part of the consciousness of Gorkhas.”

Mr. Sharma’s generation is still active even as the new generation has stepped in, in their own possible ways. Dimple Kamal is working with ICICI bank in Noida for the last four years. Despite her busy schedule she has been able to make it to the venue more often than not. Talking about her own difficulties in adjusting in Delhi Dimple says, “May be I would have come to Delhi even if we had a state of our own but the feeling that there is no opportunity back home makes survival here more difficult. In any case it would definitely have been much easier to live alone in Darjeeling than here in Delhi.”

As Dimple tries to click another photo of the Gorkha women shouting at the top of their voice, I asked her how does she manage to come to Jantar Mantar while working with a private bank. An emotional Dimple says, “My parents have actively participated in the struggle for Gorkhaland for as long as I can remember. My maternal uncle Saran Dawal continues to be in jail for last ten years for being associated with this. This struggle is to me what I am.”

These columns won’t be able to tell the tale of the hundreds of Gorkha supporters who come to participate in the dharna at Jantar Mantar every day but that doesn’t belittle the need for the government to get up from its slumber and put its act together.

The article has been published on iSikkim.com

We are not safe in Bengal: Gorkha leader Roshan Giri

Gorkha Janmukti Morcha National General Secretary Roshan Giri tells Tilak Jha on the sidelines of Gorkha meet in New Delhi that Gorkhas don’t want to be part of West Bengal.

How today’s meeting come about?

Today’s meeting is to pay homage to the martyrs who gave their life for the Gorkhaland. Our people were indiscriminately shot dead by the West Bengal Police. We are demanding CBI enquiry into this matter.

Now that the unfortunate incident is almost two weeks old and the government has not yet responded. What will you do now?

We have asked our people to be prepared for massive protests at any time. We are also demanding the separate state of Gorkhaland. So, the protest will be for Gorkhaland and for justice to our people.

The Gorkhaland movement is more than a hundred years old. Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council was formed in between. Is it going to happen?

It has to be because we don’t want to be part of West Bengal. We are in West Bengal by an accident of History. The land was never part of West Bengal. Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council (DGHC) has become redundant. I don’t want to tell anything about Subhash Ghising. (Subhash Ghising was the leader of DGHC) and the way he handled our people. He was a sold leader. Over last three years after Gorkha Janmukti Morcha was formed, we have brought the movement alive. We are going to have our Gorkhaland sooner than later.

Should ethnicity alone be the reason to demand a separate state?

It’s related to our identity. India is a union of states. Our problems can’t get solved until and unless we have a separate state. It’s a quest for Gorkha identity.

You are now demanding Gorkha dominated areas in Dooar and Siliguri. There are many people in these regions who do not want Gorkhaland.

We are not demanding something new. This has been our demand since 1907. You see the Amra Bengali, Jan Chetana Manch, Jan Jagaran Manch and another association called Bangla Bhasha Bachao Samiti…the very name of all such organisations suggests that they are only concerned about Bengali language. Bengali is a very rich language but you can’t ignore the rest.

You have been living with the same Bengalis for hundreds of years now.

Tomorrow also, after Gorkhaland will be formed, they will be living with us. West Bengal will always be our neighbouring state. I don’t see any harm in that. When Uttarakhand can be carved out of UP, Chhatisgarh can be carved out of Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand can come out of Bihar, what’s the harm if Gorkhaland is formed out of West Bengal.

What would you say to those who are concerned that their rights might be harmed in case Gorkhaland is formed?

Their rights will not be harmed. A Bihari, a Bengali or a Muslim will be entitled to similar rights as enjoyed by the Gorkhas in the new state. Now also they are with us. Many minority fronts of these communities are working under the banner of Gorkha Janmukti Morcha.

West Bengal elections are nearby. What will be your stand during this election?

There is still sometime for elections to happen. We have not yet decided about that. Whatever decision is taken by the central committee, we will follow that. We are concentrating on the demand for Gorkhaland.

It might happen in this election that Left Front government will not come back. Do you see greater hope from Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress?

Let the result come first. Anything can happen.

Do you believe that media has been unfair?

We feel that our movement is being portrayed in a different way. It’s a communal movement. It’s a violent movement. But that has never been the case.

But there have been case of violence.

It’s is not the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha. Some people with vested interests create problem and blame us. We are a demanding for Gorkhaland as per democratic means and according to the provisions of the constitution.

As a leader of the movement, did you feel at any point of time that there has been too much of violence and that you should give up?

You see the Sipchu incident. Unprovoked firing. Our people were carrying the national flag. What was the need of killing them? What was the need of imposing Section 144? We are not safe in Bengal. How can we give up?

The story was published on iSikkim.com

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