West Bengal govt announces Darjeeling Hills local body poll dates

The state government on Friday issued notifications that the election to Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA), the local autonomous body that governs Darjeeling Hills, will be held on June 26.

The notification comes even as the hunger strike by Bimal Gurung, president of Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM), continued for the third day in Darjeeling. Gurung is on a hunger strike to protest the scheduled election and demands that it be deferred.

Meanwhile, Raju Bista, a Member of Parliament from the region and Bharatiya Janata Party’s regional spokesperson, called for unity of “like-minded political parties, civil societies, public organisations and individuals” against the GTA election.

In a press statement released on Friday, Bista alleged that by issuing the notification for the GTA election, the Trinamool government has “misused” state powers. “The political parties that signed the GTA Agreement have pulled out of it, the Central Government which is one of the signatories to the GTA Agreement of 2011 is working towards Permanent Political Solution,” Bista stated.

“Now is the right time for all the like-minded political parties, civil societies, public organisations and individuals to come together against GTA,” he said in his statement.

Meanwhile, Roshan Giri, general secretary of GJM, said on Friday that the hunger-strike by Gurung had continued for the third day. The GJM broke its decade-long alliance with the BJP to extend support to the Trinamool Congress in October 2020. However, since the state government decided on holding GTA elections, the GJM had heavily criticised the move, asking for implementation of the unexecuted portion of the 2011 tripartite agreement.

According to the government’s notification, polling will take place in the constituencies under the GTA between 7 am and 4 pm on June 26.