Gurung, JAP slam Binay

Writes :RAJEEV RAVIDAS and VIVEK CHHETRI

The Jana Andolan Party and Bimal Gurung have come down heavily on the Binay Tamang faction of the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha, accusing it of making a mockery of the ultimate sacrifices of those who lost their lives in the recent agitation for Gorkhaland in the hills.

Amar Lama, the bureau member of the JAP, said Tamang had forfeited the moral right to espouse the cause of Gorkhaland by seeking and accepting the compensation package for those who had died in the recent agitation for Gorkhaland.

"The 12 innocent persons who had to pay with their lives for coming out in support for Gorkhaland were not seeking monetary compensation or jobs for their kin. They sacrificed their lives for the cause of Gorkhaland. By seeking and accepting the monetary compensation of the state government, Binay and his group have sought to make a mockery of the ultimate sacrifice made by our martyrs," he said.

The state government has decided to accede to the request of the Tamang faction by offering monetary compensation to the next of kin of those who died and were injured in the recent agitation for Gorkhaland in the hills.

Gurung, in a release issued on the web, said by settling for "frivolous doles" handed out by the state government, the Binay camp had completely disregarded the sacrifices of those who paid with their lives for Gorkhaland.

"(The Binay camp) deemed it fit to sell out our collective aspiration for a few humiliatingly frivolous doles thrown at them - Hill Area Development Council, tourism festival, Gold Cup football tournament and other promises of payments. Completely disregarding, the lives of those martyred for Gorkhaland, these lot have shamelessly given precedence to their personal benefits over the collective loss," the release said.

Accusing the Binay faction of being the "TMC's B team", Gurung said Gorkhaland would not be achieved by being "slaves to West Bengal" and appealed to the people to stand united to realise the collective dream of the Gorkha people. "I am glad to share the news that I have received very positive feedback and indications from the Central government, and soon, I will be headed to Delhi for the talks," he said.

Gurung, who is facing numerous cases and has been on the run, had received a reprieve on Monday when the Supreme Court restrained the Bengal police from taking "any coercive action" against him. He said his legal team was working towards seeking a similar immunity to all Gorkhaland activists and innocent civilians been implicated in false cases.

"The Hon'ble Supreme Court of India has deemed it right to put all cases against me on hold, and my legal team is working towards requesting a similar immunity to all the Gorkhaland activists and innocent civilians who have been implicated in false cases by the West Bengal police. As I have mentioned before, I have complete faith in our Judiciary, and believe that soon the truth will triumph," he said.

[Telegraph]