Darjeeling, Jan 10: The Gorkha Janmukti Morcha has decided to celebrate Subash Chandra Bose’s birth anniversary at the Netaji Museum in Giddapahar unlike last year when no programmes could be held on January 23 because of the strike in government offices.

This year, too, the Morcha announced a strike in all government offices from January 8.

Morcha general secretary Roshan Giri said: “This year our ex-servicemen’s association will organise a function to mark Netaji’s birth anniversary at Giddapahar and at Buxa Fort in the Dooars. The Republic Day celebrations will also be organised by the ex-servicemen in Darjeeling and Kalimpong.”

In the 1930s, Netaji was confined by the British to the house in Giddapahar (2km from Kurseong) owned by Netaji’s brother Sarat Chandra Bose. In 2001, the government converted the house into a museum. Netaji was also kept for a while at the Buxa Fort.

Last year, the subdivisional officer of Kurseong and a few government employees could only hoist the national flag and offer khadas to the statue in front of the museum.

Eighty-two-year old Moti Maya Lepcha, a gardener who was nine years old when Netaji was kept under house arrest, still lives on the premises of the museum. On January 23 every year, she usually recollects her association with Netaji and his nieces, Mira, Gita, Roma and Chitra during a programme. Lepcha’s father Kalu Singh Lama used to work for Netaji.

The Morcha, which held its central committee meeting here today, has decided to destroy illicit liquor that the Gorkhaland Personnel have seized till date following the party’s ban on the movement of “illicit” liquor from Sikkim and also the subsequent ban on the sale of alcohol in the Darjeeling hills.

“We will destroy the bottles at Jamuni, about 12km from Darjeeling, on January 13,” said Giri.

The decision to form a six-member internal disciplinary committee, which will include Taranaga Pandit from Darjeeling and Moti Prasad Sharma from among others, was also taken at the central committee meeting.

The party has also decided to hold dharnas and rallies in Delhi when the fifth round of talks take place. The date of the talks has not yet been announced.