April 30: Hill affairs minister Asok Bhattacharya today advised tourists not to go to Darjeeling this season because of the turmoil there.

“I earnestly request tourists not to go to Darjeeling this summer. The situation in the hills is complicated,” Bhattacharya, also the Siliguri MLA, said at Writers’ Buildings.

“Police are every now and then having to rescue tourists stuck in the hills because of the (Gorkha Janmukti) Morcha’s demonstrations. The situation is far from normal.”

Asked if tourists should stay away from the hills, home secretary A.M. Chakrabarti said: “I won’t comment on that but newspapers have been reporting disturbances there.”

The Morcha, which has been demanding a new state, had recently shut down all government offices in the hills for 14 days. Many tourists had to hurry down to Siliguri yesterday morning as taxi drivers took most of the day off to campaign for Gorkhaland.

Bhattacharya said: “The Trinamul Congress and the Congress are backing the Morcha and the disruptions being caused by its movement.”

Siliguri has remained largely unaffected so far and the government has rejected the Morcha’s requests for permission to hold rallies there.

Bhattacharya said: “There is a limit to our (the government’s) patience. The unconstitutional movement has led to losses worth several crores (in the hills).”