Tamang-Gurung meet sparks buzz about Hills future

Darjeeling: An hour-long meeting between Bimal Gurung and Binoy Tamang sparked speculation about a new political equation shaping up in the Hills. Tamang called on Gurung at the Pattabong guest house, below Singamari in Darjeeling, on Wednesday night.

This was the first meeting between the two after nearly four years of separation. In 2017, Gurung and some others went into hiding, and Tamang along with Anit Thapa formed a faction of Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM), becoming its president and general secretary respectively.

Tamang said it was a courtesy visit that laid more stress on personal issues. “He (Gurung) has been the father of GJM party. Since he is elder to me, I went to meet him. We talked about our families. We also spoke about some issues related to the public, but nothing more than that,” he added.

Tamang resigned from his party post on July 15 over differences with senior leaders. He had also announced he would soon embark on the third chapter of his political career.

Asked about the possibility of rejoining Gurung, Tamang said: “In politics, there are no permanent enemies and friends. I will make a formal announcement soon.” Speculation was rife since Tamang called on GJM founder Gurung and handed back the party flags after his resignation.

Gurung admitted having an hour-long meeting with Tamang. “He (Tamang) wanted to meet me and I asked him to come. We did not go into political details, but talked about the current situation and what needs to be addressed,” the GJM leader said and added he was ready to “help out” Tamang.

The two leaders supported Mamata Banerjee and her party in the 2021 Bengal election. Both, however, had fielded separate candidates. The Tamang faction managed to win the Kalimpong seat while the Gurung camp came a cropper.

Gurung refused to react to Tamang’s “third political chapter” declaration. Tamang was with GNLF till 1999, and then joined hands with Gurung to form GJM in 2007.

Alokkant Mani Thulung, the Darjeeling subdivision president of the Thapa faction, said Tamang’s personal thoughts had overridden his principles. “When he (Tamang) was with us, we were told Gurung was a closed chapter. We were also told we would never share any political or administrative platform with Gurung,” he said.

There are also speculations that Anit Thapa might float a new political outfit.