Darjeeling: Army redeployed after fresh violence

GJM claims two youths killed in police firing, cops deny allegations

The army was redeployed on Saturday after fresh violence erupted in Darjeeling hills where Gorkhaland supporters torched a police outpost, a toy train station, and clashed with the police at two places.

The Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM), spearheading the agitation for a separate state to be carved out of West Bengal, claimed that two youths were killed in police firing. The police, however, said they did not have any report of firing.

The police burst teargas shells and baton-charged activists of the GJM and the Gorkha National Liberation Front (GNLF) who attacked the security personnel at Sonada and Chawkbazar in the hills. Two columns of the army comprising around 100 personnel were deployed at Sonada and Darjeeling in the wake of fresh violence, defence sources said.

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee appealed for peace and said that the government was ready for talks with the hill parties, but peace has to be restored first. “The government has shown enough restraint in the interest of the people of the hills,” she said.

The chief minister accused the Centre of “deliberate and total non-cooperation” and alleged that its refusal to send CRPF personnel, as demanded by the state government, had led to the current situation in the Darjeeling hills where the indefinite shutdown entered its 24th day on Saturday.

In New Delhi, Union home ministry sources said 11 companies of paramilitary force personnel were sent to Darjeeling by the Centre, including one company consisting of women. The West Bengal government has its own security forces like the Eastern Frontier Rifles and the State Armed Police and both have several battalions, they said, adding that it was not deploying these forces and instead blaming the central government. GNLF spokesperson Neeraj Zimba claimed that a youth Tashi Bhutia was shot dead by the security forces on Friday night when he had ventured out to purchase medicines at Sonada.

But a police officer said, “We don’t have any report of police firing as of now. We are looking into the incident. We can give you details later.” Inspector General of Police (IGP) Javed Shamim, when asked about the firing, said, “It will be known only after the inquiry.”

The GJM and other hill parties have lodged a police complaint accusing the force of killing the youth.As news of the death spread, hundreds of Gorkhaland supporters came out on the streets and raised slogans against alleged “police atrocities”.

They clashed with the police and set on fire a police outpost at Sonada and the toy train station of the Darjeeling- Himalayan Railways, a UNESCO world heritage site.

GJM sources claimed that another youth identified as Suraj Sundas was killed in police firing during clashes between the police and the protesters at Chawkbazar area. The police denied the charge.