GJM activists attack forces, five injured

Bengal writes to Centre for 10 companies of CRPF

 Five security force personnel were seriously injured in an attack by suspected GJM activists in the Darjeeling hills, while a 20-year-old truck driver, who was injured in an incident of arson,  died in Kolkata on Friday.

The Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) activists set afire several houses and offices across the hills on the 16th day of the indefinite bandh called by it to press its demand for a separate state.

Life remained crippled due to the bandh in Darjeeling where Internet services were shut. Security forces patrolled the trouble-torn areas.

Meanwhile, the West Bengal government sought 10 companies of CRPF from the Centre to deal with the situation, the request having come just two days after the army contingents were withdrawn at the state’s request.

The attack on the security personnel took place on Thursday night when they had gone to a village near Teesta Valley  to conduct a search operation.

A mob targeted the security personnel with stones and ‘khukri’ (traditional Nepali dagger), injuring five of them seriously. The injured police and CRPF personnel were rescued and admitted to a hospital, police said.

In another incident, the house of Mirik Municipality vice chairman M Zimba was set on fire by protesters on Friday. The supporters also ransacked the Rangli Rangliat police outpost and snatched a self-loading rifle and a pistol. Two police vehicles were set ablaze in the incident, police said.

Aniket Chetri, the truck driver who had received 70% burns when his truck was set afire on June 20 by GJM activists, died at a hospital in Kolkata on Friday. With this, the state police said the toll in the violence has risen to two. On June 17, a man was killed during clashes.