Relatives of slain 11 Gorkha activists to be present at Modi's swearing-in ceremony
Darjeeling, May 30 (UNI): GJM's Bimal Gurung faction general secretary Roshan Giri today said relatives of 11 Gorkha activists killed during agitation in 2017 had been invited to the PM Narendra Modi's second term swearing-in ceremony in New Delhi this evening and that they would attend.
"We are happy to share the news that the 11 families from our hills whose family members had been killed by the West Bengal police during the 2017 anti-language imperialism and Gorkhaland agitation, will be attending the inauguration of the new government in Delhi today," Mr Giri said in a statement from an undisclosed location.
"We had kept this news under wraps, as you all are aware, democracy is dead in Darjeeling, and we had feared that the family members of these 11 saheeds wouldn’t be permitted to leave Darjeeling by TMC and their police, if they came to know. As you get this release, these family members are mid-air and they will be landing in Delhi shortly," the statement added.
"The invitation to these 11 families was symbolic, as it was an acknowledgement of the sacrifices made by the Gorkha community, and reflected the deep sense of responsibility shown by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, MP Raju Bista, and senior NDA partner Bharatiya Janata Party," the statement also said.
The Gorkha Janmukti Morcha is an alliance with BJP, which won both Darjeeling Parliament seat and Darjeeling Assembly seat.
"We are hopeful, that once the new government is formed, they will constitute an independent inquiry committee, headed by a serving Supreme Court judge to investigate these extra-judicial killings that West Bengal police indulged in, and everyone involved in their heinous murder is brought to justice," Mr Giri maintained.
"We congratulate Prime Minister Narendra Modi on his second term, and look forward to strengthening him in all the Gorkha majority areas across India. Jai Hind," he said.
The families of 11 who have allegedly been killed in election violence have been invited to PM Modi's oath-taking ceremony today.
Asansol MP Babul Supriyo, tipped to be a minister in the new government, said: "Mamata Banerjee’s own oath-taking on May 20, 2011, was attended by the families of 'victims of political violence in Nandigram and Singur'. She had accused the Left Front of letting loose a reign of terror then... So her charge that BJP has devalued an 'august occasion' is hollow."
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