A new bloc that was formed in the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA) on Tuesday has crumbled, throwing the hill body into a state of limbo.

On Tuesday, 20 GTA Sabha members, cutting across political lines, came together.

The meeting was attended by Ajoy Edwards, the chief convener of the Indian Gorkha Janshakti Front (IGJF), Independent Binay Tamang and other leaders who had purportedly resigned from Anit Thapa’s Bharatiya Gorkha Prajatantrik Morcha (BGPM) and the Trinamool Congress.

On Friday, Rajesh Chowhan, the deputy chairman of the GTA Sabha, along with GTA Sabha members Uday Dewan, Milesh Rai, N. Sherpa, Ratan Thapa, resigned as Sabha members. At least 24 GTA Sabha members have resigned from the GTA so far.

The strength of the elected members at the Sabha is 45, but two seats were already vacant.

Uday Dewan, who had quit the BGPM but had refused to step down from the GTA, said they all had decided to resign to go with the narrative that the GTA should not be a hindrance to Gorkhaland.

“Earlier we had refused to resign from the GTA as we were not clear how things were unfolding or how the state government would act,” said Dewan.

“Since there is a strong narrative that the GTA would be a stumbling block for Gorkhaland, we do not want to be seen as a stumbling block, and hence we all decided to resign,” said Dewan.

This narrative was first started by BGPM president Anit Thapa while resigning as the chief executive of the GTA recently.

At least 12 BGPM Sabha members had resigned from the party but had refused to quit the GTA.

Suraj Rai, a GTA Sabha member backed by Bimal Gurung’s Gorkha Janmukti Morcha, has also resigned.

The six Sabha members belonging to Edwards’s IGJF have not resigned.

"Some leaders are trying to make the GTA defunct to cover up their corruption," said a Sabha member of the IGJF.

With nearly half of the GTA Sabha members resigning, the fate of the GTA is in limbo, said an observer.

“There are provisions to appoint an administrator at the GTA by the state government,” said the observer.

The present crisis at the GTA was precipitated by the change of guard in Bengal after the Assembly polls. After the BJP came to power, Thapa, whose BGPM is an ally of Trinamool, purportedly faced pressure and resigned as the chief executive.

Similarly, heads of several civic bodies run by Trinamool across Bengal quit their posts. One of them was Gautam Deb, who was the mayor of Siliguri Municipal Corporation.