The great Indian festival has caused a cease fire in Darjeeling and the hills are smiling for the Pujas. Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) President, Bimal Gurung declared an end to the ongoing strike in Darjeeling for 104 days. It was in response to Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh’s appeal to him to terminate the prolonged agitation. Singh said that dialogue should be the only way to diffuse a crisis in a democracy. An official level meeting will take place soon. The Home Minister’s statement significantly contained no reference to the West Bengal government or to a tripartite meeting. Rajnath Singh’s promise of holding talks within a fortnight should be fulfilled before the third leg of the bilateral dialogue between the GJM and the West Bengal government slated for October in Kolkata. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has all along reiterated that the creation of a separate state of Gorkhaland was not acceptable but that the issue was not within the ambit of the state government. Meanwhile, the Gorkha Territorial Administration (GTA) has been rebooted with Binoy Tamang as Chairman in place of Bimal Gurung.
Darjeeling woke up to a series of cellphone pings heralding the resumption of internet services and was back to social media with a vengeance. Online banking transactions have begun. Traders have announced their decision to be back in business. Vehicles have started running between the hills and the plains. During the 104 days of agitation, eleven persons were killed and several injured. Tourism and the tea trade had taken a bad hit. It is not clear yet if the GJM has taken a long-standing decision to cry halt to an unnecessary agitation. The situation will hopefully clear up before the end of October.
