Gorkha Janamukti Morcha chief Bimal Gurung has warned that any attempt to arrest him in connection with the ongoing agitation in Darjeeling hills will unleash a spate of violence there and the West Bengal government will be responsible for the consequences.
His comments came in the wake of an FIR lodged against him and four other GJM leaders by Nagerkata police in Jalpaiguri on February 9 for causing obstruction to duties of public servants, illegal assembly in areas under prohibitory orders and encroaching forest areas for temporary shelters
"If police try to arrest me, the people of the hills will give them a fitting reply. They will virtually put the hills on fire. The Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee government will be solely responsible for the consequences," he told PTI over phone on Friday.
GJM had called for an indefinite strike on February 9 demanding a Central Bureau of Investgation inquiry into the Sipchu police firing on February 8, which left two of its supporters dead, and had stated that the outfit would not return to the talks table if Gorkhaland was not the issue of discussion.
Gurung said all the charges made in the FIR were false as they "were holding peaceful demonstration when police fired at GJM activists without any provocation".
He reiterated his demand for a CBI probe into the firing incident. "Only a CBI enquiry will unfold the truth," he said.
Meanwhile, as tension prevailed in the hills, the Centre's interlocutor for Darjeeling peace process Bijay Madan reached nearby Siliguri and will reach Darjeeling on Saturday evening for talks with the leadership of GJM which is spearheading the agitation for a separate Gorkhaland.
Before coming to Darjeeling town, Madan will hold a meeting on the law and order situation in the hills with District Magistrate Mohan Gandhi and Superintendent of Police Debendra Pratap Singh, official sources said.
He would have discussions with GJM leaders before returning to New Delhi, sources said.
Image: Gorkha Janamukti Morcha chief Bimal Gurung
