The Gorkha Janamukti Morcha (GJM), which is leading the shutdown in the hills since June 15, had threatened to start a fast unto-death strike and later self-immolation to pressure the state and the central governments to give in to their demand.
The ongoing stir by Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) seeking the creation of a Gorkhaland state by carving hill areas in West Bengal has received support from several Nepali groups in the northeast.
Nepalis, who are residents of the eight states in the region, are keenly following developments in Darjeeling and many feel the creation of Gorkhaland would address the “identity crisis” they witness to some extent.
As per the 2001 census, there are 5.65 lakh Nepali-speaking people in Assam — second only to West Bengal, which had 10.23 lakh. Sikkim, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Manipur, Arunachal Pradesh, and Nagaland also have Nepali-speaking residents.
Data for Nepali-speaking residents in the northeastern states for census 2011 isn’t available. But Nepali speakers in Assam believe their number could be well over 2 million. Nepalis have lived in Assam for close to two centuries – from 1826, when the British used Gorkha soldiers to annex Assam, there have been several waves of such migration.
There have been 13 Nepali-speaking MLAs in Assam since independence of India and a few MPs. Ram Prasad Sharma, BJP MP from Tezpur in Assam, also chief of the Assam Gorkha Sanmilan, favours Gorkhaland.
Hundreds of Gorkha youths from across Arunachal Pradesh organised a rally in Itanagar last week. Several organisations in Sikkim, where nearly 63% of residents speak Nepali, including chief minister Pawan Kumar Chamling, have also supported the creation of Gorkhaland.