The car of ABGL leader Tribhuwan Rai in Kalimpong on Tuesday. Picture by Chinlop Fudong Lepcha

Darjeeling, Sept. 30: The Gorkha Janmukti Morcha today clarified that it had not “banned” any party from holding public meetings but had only “suggested” that outfits should stop speaking against the sentiments of the hill people.

“We have not banned other parties. We were merely suggesting that they should stop confusing people by talking against Gorkhaland. In democracy, everyone has the right to speak but there is no space for anti-Gorkhaland forces as the majority of people wants separate state,” said Roshan Giri, the general secretary of the Morcha.

The clarification followed two days after ABGL president Madan Tamang threatened to write to the Election Commission to cancel the registration of the Morcha.

Tamang’s outburst came close on the heels of Morcha vice-president Pradip Pradhan’s announcement on Saturday. “We will not allow public meetings to take place in Kurseong and we make an appeal to residents of other places to do the same,” Pradhan had said.

Tamang, who was supposed to address a meeting in Kurseong on Sunday, had said his party would approach the commission on Tuesday after consulting lawyers.

“We have disowned the Sixth Schedule status. This will never be accepted by the hill people and by the Morcha, which has been formed only for Gorkhaland. However, some forces are trying to implement it,” said Giri.

The Morcha leadership accused Tamang of being “an agent of the state government” who was trying to implement the special status for the hills.

Tamang had brought similar charges against the Morcha in his Friday speech and had said the party was working hand in glove with the government. “The Morcha will not settle for anything less than Gorkhaland. Earlier, too, Madan Tamang had worked closely with the CPM,” said Giri. He was referring to Tamang’s proximity to the CPM as chairman of the People’s Democratic Front, an anti-GNLF coalition that once existed in the hills.

The Morcha also said the ABGL had not mentioned “Gorkhaland” in its party’s constitution. “Our constitution maintains that the party was formed for Gorkhaland but the same cannot be said of the ABGL,” said Giri.

Tamang was also accused of not being transparent himself. The charge was levelled after the ABGL president alleged that the Morcha should be “transparent" about the 51-page submission to the Centre during the tripartite talks.

“When Tamang was the chairman of the PDF, he asked us (in 2005) to sign a memorandum (on Gorkhaland) minutes before presenting it to Biman Bose (now CPM state secretary). Even after it was submitted, he told us not to release its contents to the media. He himself had shown no transparency in the way he functioned,” said D.K. Pradhan, a central committee member, who was then a member of GNLF (C).

The Morcha also announced that all taxis would have to sport the “GL” number plates from October 7 in the area that the party wants to be considered as Gorkhaland.