Mamata crackdown on GJM begins

The Bengal government has begun a crackdown on Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) supporters in Darjeeling with the police rounding up nearly 60 people,including a close aide of outfit chief Bimal Gurung,as the hills continued to be tense on the fourth day of the indefinite bandh.

Executive member of Gorkha Territorial Administration (GTA) Anit Thapa was picked up Monday night from Kurseong. He has been charged with three non-bailable offences,including arson and rioting,of 2011 and 2012. “We have arrested him based on pending warrants,” said Superintendent of Police (Darjeeling) Kunal Agarwal.

Thapa,known as GTA’s “finance minister”,is considered the right hand of Gurung. “He controls and manages the finances of Gurung,” said a party insider.