We believe in Gandhian principles: Gurung wife

KOLKATA: Gandhibad and woman power this twin force has helped keep the current phase of the Gorkhaland agitation led by the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) peaceful, said Asha Gurung, the party's Nari Morcha president and wife of GJM president Bimal Gurung.
Asha, who has been trying to build GJM's organisation in Kolkata, spoke to TOI on Sunday about the party's future plans.
The earlier phase of the agitation led by the Gorkha National Liberation Front (GNLF) had been violent, she pointed out. But GJM's agitation since 2007 had been mostly peaceful. "We believe in the philosophy of Mahatma Gandhi. We preach non-violence to our people," she said.
"We want to achieve Gorkhaland the same way Gandhiji had achieved freedom for India. Whether it takes five years or 10, we will continue in our peaceful way to free ourselves from the yoke of Bengal."
According to her, the leading role of women in the current phase of the Gorkhaland agitation had helped keep GJM's movement peaceful. "During the GNLF movement, only men had led the agitation. They are more volatile by nature, which is why the earlier phase of the movement had been violent."
From enforcing closures to liquor bans, members of the Gorkha Nari Morcha are now taking the lead. Asha did not deny the role of the menfolk in the agitation. "The youths form the backbone of the movement. But we women keep them under control and cool them down when they tend to become violent." According to her, for the past one month, GNLF supporters were engineering clashes in the Hills to "sabotage the non-violent nature of our movement."
During GJM's liquor ban the Hills last November, groups of women carrying party flags would stop cars on way to Darjeeling and look for liquor bottles being carried up. Though the ban has been lifted, Nari Morcha members were still carrying out an anti-liquor campaign in the hills, she said. "Liquor is a social evil. Our boys do not get employment after completing their education. Then they start drinking. Their mothers and the women in their houses are the worst sufferers."
According to her, another feature of the current phase of the agitation was complete communal harmony. "People of all communities and linguistic groups in Darjeeling are support us," she claimed. "In an effort to establish that Gorkhas are tribals, Subash Ghisingh had interfered with the religious practices of people, but we have stopped all that."
She demanded adequate compensation for the families of 24 Eastern Frontier Rifles jawans slain in Silda. "The government had promised Rs 15 lakh to each family, but the full amount is not being given. Also, the government should arrange jobs for their dependants."
The interim council for Darjeeling would not be accepted unless it had jurisdiction over Siliguri, Terai and the Gorkha-dominated parts of Dooars, she said. "We would not accept the Sixth Schedule under any circumstances," she added.