Gorkhaland activists calls for closure of schools in Darjeeling

DARJEELING - The students’ wing of the Gorkha Janamukti Morcha (GJMM) gave a call for all educational institutions in the Darjeeling to close down from Friday.

This ultimatum was issued as a mark of protest against the police baton charging student activists staging a hunger strike in the cause of Gorkhaland.

The activists of GJMM students wing were seeking permission for an open rally to be held on February 6 in Siliguri to raise their demand, which was not granted by the administration.

Following this, the activists sat on hunger strike and also trapped district magistrate and other senior officials inside their offices.

“The police without any reason baton charged students who were staging a hunger strike as a mark of our demand for Gorkhaland. We strongly condemn this. And today we are saying that we don’t want police which is acting like goons and hitting innocent students instead of overseeing law and order situation,” said Keshab Raj Pokhreil, Secretary, Students’ Wing of Gorkha Janamukti Morcha (GJMM).

The GJMM activists have also warned that they would restrict the movement of all government vehicles including the police in the hills area.

Gorkhas have been demanding a separate state, to be carved out of West Bengal, to protect their culture and heritage.

The Gorkha population in West Bengal is estimated to be around a million. (ANI)