Alleged Gorkha Janmukti Morcha supporters engaged in a pitched
battle with security personnel at two different spots here today,
leaving six uniformed persons and three members of the mob injured.
This was the first clash between Gorkhaland supporters and the police
in Kalimpong district since the latest round of the unrest began in the
hills in early June. The district, however, had witnessed numerous
incidents of arson and vandalism in the past three weeks.
The trouble began when Yuva Morcha, the youth
wing of the Morcha, took out a massive march from Damber Chowk around
11am with many of the youths openly wielding khukris. As a
section of the rallyists reached a six-storied building which also
houses the office of the Trinamul Congress at R. C. Mintri Road, some in
the group first started hurling stones at a group of police personnel
posted in the front of the structure. They also torched two shops
located on the third floor of the building.
Within minutes, the reinforcement, including those from the State
Armed Police, led by Ajit Singh Yadav, the superintendent of police,
Kalimpong, reached the spot and cordoned off the area.
"Police engaged themselves in putting off the fire. Soon, some local
people also joined in the exercise. However, fire engines could not
reach the spot as Morcha supporters allegedly prevented it from going
there," said a source.
Even as the blaze was being doused, a massive mob of Morcha
supporters came rushing along Rishi Road, which runs parallel to R.C.
Mintri but is on a higher gradient, and started pelting the police
personnel below with stones. Police fired tear gas cells to disperse the
mob.
"However, they remained undeterred and continued raining stones,
taking advantage of the vantage point it enjoyed. This continued for
about an hour," said the source.
On June 8, police had been attacked by protesters who took vantage
points in Darjeeling when chief minister Mamata Banerjee was holding a
cabinet meeting.
Even as the R.C. Mintri Road incident was being played out, another
mob set on fire the office of the North Bengal State Transport
Corporation located at Motor Stand, about 1km away.
Eyewitnesses said as a posse of policemen reached Motor Stand, the
crowd dispersed and some of them gathered at Damber Chowk, a furlong
away. "A little later, another mob appeared and started hurling stones
at police personnel. The police then fired in the air and lobbed rubber
bullets at the mob," said an eyewitness.
The police said six persons were injured in the clashes.
Morcha sources, on their part, said three of their supporters had
also received injuries. "Six (policemen) have been injured, four of whom
have been hospitalised. One of them has received injuries from khukri...Two others were administered first aid and are fine now," said the Kalimpong SP.
Ramesh Allay, a senior Morcha leader, said three party supporters,
too, had been injured in the day's incidents, and accused the police of
using live bullets. "We have evidence to prove that the police used live
bullets, and not rubber bullets," he said.
The Kalimpong police superintendent, Yadav, denied using anything
other than rubber bullets. "We fired non-lethal gas gun...rubbers
bullets are fired from gas gun," he said.
Amidst all these, Damber Chowk, which is in the heart of Kalimpong,
looked like a war zone as Morcha supporters collected tyres around the
roundabout and set them on fire. Till the filing of this report, no
arrest has been in connection with today's incidents.(TT)
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