<p>Gorkha National Liberation Front founder Subhash Ghisingh, who spearheaded the Gorkhaland movement in the 1980s, died here today at the age of 78.<br /><br /></p>.<p>He was suffering from liver ailments and cancer and breathed his last at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital.<br /><br />"He was admitted to the hospital five days ago and was diagnosed for cirrhosis of the liver and cancer. He died around 10:30 AM," a hospital source said.<br /><br />Ghisingh had founded GNLF in 1980 and was the chairman of the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council in West Bengal from 1988 to 2008.<br /><br />He had led the Gorkhaland movement to demand for a separate state for ethnic Gorkha people living in Darjeeling district of West Bengal.<br /><br />The GNLF led the movement, which disrupted the district with massive violence between 1986 and 1988.<br /><br />Following series of talks with Centre and the West Bengal government, the issue was resolved in 1988 with the setting up of the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council, a semi-autonomous body. He became its chairman after winning the first council elections.<br /><br />Ghisingh was born on June 22, 1936 at Manju Tea Estate in Darjeeling.<br /><br />He joined the Gorkha Rifles of the Indian Army as a soldier in 1954 but quit in 1960.<br /><br />In 1968, Ghisingh formed a political organisation called Nilo Jhanda to protect rights of the ethnic Gorkhas.<br /><br />In April 1979, he raised the demand for a separate state for the Nepali-speaking people of the Darjeeling hills.<br /><br />In 2011, his party contested the state assembly elections from Darjeeling, Kalimpong and Kurseong in the Darjeeling hills but lost all the three seats.<br /><br />Since then, he was in some sort of political hibernation. <br /></p>
<p>Gorkha National Liberation Front founder Subhash Ghisingh, who spearheaded the Gorkhaland movement in the 1980s, died here today at the age of 78.<br /><br /></p>.<p>He was suffering from liver ailments and cancer and breathed his last at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital.<br /><br />"He was admitted to the hospital five days ago and was diagnosed for cirrhosis of the liver and cancer. He died around 10:30 AM," a hospital source said.<br /><br />Ghisingh had founded GNLF in 1980 and was the chairman of the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council in West Bengal from 1988 to 2008.<br /><br />He had led the Gorkhaland movement to demand for a separate state for ethnic Gorkha people living in Darjeeling district of West Bengal.<br /><br />The GNLF led the movement, which disrupted the district with massive violence between 1986 and 1988.<br /><br />Following series of talks with Centre and the West Bengal government, the issue was resolved in 1988 with the setting up of the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council, a semi-autonomous body. He became its chairman after winning the first council elections.<br /><br />Ghisingh was born on June 22, 1936 at Manju Tea Estate in Darjeeling.<br /><br />He joined the Gorkha Rifles of the Indian Army as a soldier in 1954 but quit in 1960.<br /><br />In 1968, Ghisingh formed a political organisation called Nilo Jhanda to protect rights of the ethnic Gorkhas.<br /><br />In April 1979, he raised the demand for a separate state for the Nepali-speaking people of the Darjeeling hills.<br /><br />In 2011, his party contested the state assembly elections from Darjeeling, Kalimpong and Kurseong in the Darjeeling hills but lost all the three seats.<br /><br />Since then, he was in some sort of political hibernation. <br /></p>