Anit Thapa, ex-GJM leader, floats outfit

Darjeeling: Former Gorkha Janmukti Morcha leader

Anit Thapa

floated a new outfit, Bharatiya Gorkha Pr-ajatantrik Morcha (BGPM), on Thursday, ending months of speculation.

Thapa had quit a faction of GJM in July, a day after then president Binoy Tamang tendered his resignation.

The BGPM president made it clear that he would not take a confrontational approach to dealing with governments. “We have to maintain diplomacy to achieve something. We will be stern in our demands, but at the same time work in cooperation with both the state and central governments,” Thapa said.

In the run-up to launching the outfit, he floated the narrative of a “naya samikaran (new equation)” in

Hills

politics. “Our party and flag will protect the interests of the Gorkha community and not harm them. We will be realistic and practical in our approach. Our policy will be to make inclusive and constructive decisions,” Thapa said.

Reflecting on past statehood agitations and the role of leaders, Thapa said the policies adopted had always been faulty. “We always went on a path where we could not achieve anything. Political parties and leaders always fought and pulled each other back. Our party, however, will not follow such regressive policies,” he said.

Besides old leaders, several prominent faces from the fields of sports, drama, music, literature and academia attended the event to unveil the new party’s name and flag.