Darjeeling Diary
Having lived Darjeeling for nine years in Bimal Gurung's constituency, I point out what makes makes Gurung's agitation click with the people of Darjeeling.
I had the privilege of studying in Darjeeling for nine years and during that time I came had the opportunity to observe Bimal Gurung from close quarters. During my days in Darjeeling there were a number of political murders. Anyone who opposed Subhash Ghising was finished off and one of them was Rudra Pradhan, a councilor in the DGHC (Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council). He was hacked to death in broad daylight in the Beef Market of Darjeeling in front of the whole market.Bimal Gurung in those days was a Ghisingh loyalist and he was elected to the DGHC as a councillor from Patlebas (an area that was about five minutes away from my school.
I left Darjeeling in 2004 and I was a little surprised to hear that soon after Bimal Gurung turned against Subhash Ghising. It seemed surprising that a man who had been a Ghising loyalist all through his political career could actually break away from the GNLF and form his own party. However it seems the old adage “There are no permanent friends or enemies in politics has been proven true again. Gurung has floated his own party and plunged into the Gorkhaland agitation, a dream that is still alive among gorkhas who reside in Darjeeling and surrounding areas.
Subhash Ghising was a powerful man in the Darjeeling hills and no one could touch him. However his alienation from the people and his failure to understand the pulse of the people led to his down fall. On the other hand Gurung has is extremely well connected to the masses and that is evident from the way he has garnered support for his agitation to relies a dream that the people of the hills had almost given up. They knew that Gorkhaland was never to happen as Subhash Ghising was no longer interested in it. Along with this the lack of development in the hills proved to be Ghising’s nemesis.
It was in this scenario that Bimal Gurung appeared on the scene. Along with known faces like Roshan Giri he formed the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha to revive the Gorkhaland agitation. He made the people of the hills believe in their dream and renewed their hope of having their own state-Gorkhaland.
Gurung has always been a leader who has delivered. He has been proactive and is very well aware of the mood among citizens of Darjeeling. He has also been smart and formulated a team that has planned his agitation and looked into every detail of it. It is well planned and above all well managed. To top it off, it has support. I have been in touch with a few of my friends in the hills and they say that are happy to take part in the organization as it hardly inconveniences them. They know when the supplies are coming in and what exactly the situation is. Gurung has set up an excellent information management and distribution system which is one of the biggest strengths of this agitation. Also Gurung has been smart in allowing gaps for people to stock up and replenish their stores. This has made it a very sustainable model of agitation and it is helping his agitation a lot.
Another very clever move on Bimal Gurung’s part is that he has spared the schools, tea gardens and cinchona plantations from the purview of the strike. While I was in school the GNLF had called an indefinite strike which lasted for little over a week. This was immensely unpopular because he people did not have a clue of what was happening and the fact that schools and tea gardens were closed made matters even worse as the economy of the hill town depends on these three sectors. Bimal Gurung seems to have learned from the mistakes that the GNLF made and all credit should be given to him because he has managed to create a model where the agitation can be sustained for a long time. His idea to set up a force to combat violence and facilitate law and order during the agitation means that he will almost be running a parallel administrative system. His call for a non violent agitation is another clever tactic and Bimal Gurung seems to be doing all the right things. It is indeed going to be much more difficult for the state government to tackle Gurung. Also the fact that he is a grass roots leader who is now well known at the national level only makes it easier for him to negotiate with the centre and the state. The point is that Bimal Gurung is only getting stronger as the people see him not just as a political leader but as a person who will deliver. Even if he does not get them gorkhaland they know that the hills will be a better place under his regime. I spoke to a friend in Darjeeling just before writing this article and even he agreed that everyone was impressed with the organization of this agitation in Darjeeling.
Where the agitation will go from here is difficult to predict. Whether Gurung will be successful in his endeavour is also difficult to tell. But one thing is sure. Gurung has the support of the people behind him. And that will see him though for a long, long way.
I left Darjeeling in 2004 and I was a little surprised to hear that soon after Bimal Gurung turned against Subhash Ghising. It seemed surprising that a man who had been a Ghising loyalist all through his political career could actually break away from the GNLF and form his own party. However it seems the old adage “There are no permanent friends or enemies in politics has been proven true again. Gurung has floated his own party and plunged into the Gorkhaland agitation, a dream that is still alive among gorkhas who reside in Darjeeling and surrounding areas.
Subhash Ghising was a powerful man in the Darjeeling hills and no one could touch him. However his alienation from the people and his failure to understand the pulse of the people led to his down fall. On the other hand Gurung has is extremely well connected to the masses and that is evident from the way he has garnered support for his agitation to relies a dream that the people of the hills had almost given up. They knew that Gorkhaland was never to happen as Subhash Ghising was no longer interested in it. Along with this the lack of development in the hills proved to be Ghising’s nemesis.
It was in this scenario that Bimal Gurung appeared on the scene. Along with known faces like Roshan Giri he formed the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha to revive the Gorkhaland agitation. He made the people of the hills believe in their dream and renewed their hope of having their own state-Gorkhaland.
Gurung has always been a leader who has delivered. He has been proactive and is very well aware of the mood among citizens of Darjeeling. He has also been smart and formulated a team that has planned his agitation and looked into every detail of it. It is well planned and above all well managed. To top it off, it has support. I have been in touch with a few of my friends in the hills and they say that are happy to take part in the organization as it hardly inconveniences them. They know when the supplies are coming in and what exactly the situation is. Gurung has set up an excellent information management and distribution system which is one of the biggest strengths of this agitation. Also Gurung has been smart in allowing gaps for people to stock up and replenish their stores. This has made it a very sustainable model of agitation and it is helping his agitation a lot.
Another very clever move on Bimal Gurung’s part is that he has spared the schools, tea gardens and cinchona plantations from the purview of the strike. While I was in school the GNLF had called an indefinite strike which lasted for little over a week. This was immensely unpopular because he people did not have a clue of what was happening and the fact that schools and tea gardens were closed made matters even worse as the economy of the hill town depends on these three sectors. Bimal Gurung seems to have learned from the mistakes that the GNLF made and all credit should be given to him because he has managed to create a model where the agitation can be sustained for a long time. His idea to set up a force to combat violence and facilitate law and order during the agitation means that he will almost be running a parallel administrative system. His call for a non violent agitation is another clever tactic and Bimal Gurung seems to be doing all the right things. It is indeed going to be much more difficult for the state government to tackle Gurung. Also the fact that he is a grass roots leader who is now well known at the national level only makes it easier for him to negotiate with the centre and the state. The point is that Bimal Gurung is only getting stronger as the people see him not just as a political leader but as a person who will deliver. Even if he does not get them gorkhaland they know that the hills will be a better place under his regime. I spoke to a friend in Darjeeling just before writing this article and even he agreed that everyone was impressed with the organization of this agitation in Darjeeling.
Where the agitation will go from here is difficult to predict. Whether Gurung will be successful in his endeavour is also difficult to tell. But one thing is sure. Gurung has the support of the people behind him. And that will see him though for a long, long way.
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