In the afternoon, a five-member delegation led by general secretary Roshan Giri today left for Delhi to meet UPA and NDA leaders reportedly to pursue the statehood demand.
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| GJM general secretary Roshan Giri |
The meeting at Patleybas continued for well over five hours, but party leaders refused to speak to the media saying internal matters were discussed and they could not be disclosed at the moment.
However, sources said issues such as the strategies to be adopted in the event of the Telangana Bill getting through cleanly and the forthcoming general election held centrestage in the meeting.
“It will not be apt to divulge the issues discussed at the meeting. But Telangana and the Lok Sabha did feature along with various development issues,” one of the sources said.
So far, the GJM has not taken a hard stance after the go ahead given to Telangana unlike in the past. Instead, party leaders have chose to tread a cautious path, while maintaining Telangana has opened avenues for a Gorkhaland state.
GJM chief Bimal Gurung had earlier pointed out that the state government’s consent was not needed for creating a new state as was proved by Telangana. The Andhra Pradesh government had opposed the bill, but the central government got it passed, which rejuvenated the GJM as the party was widely perceived to have lost a footing.
Meanwhile, the GJM’s rivals have upped the ante for a separate state even as the general election is just around the corner. They are also accusing the Morcha of callousness and settling for the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration, which they contend is but a temporary arrangement and against the wishes of the people.
The GJM has in the meantime cancelled its March 2 public meeting in Sukna announced right after the passage of the Telangana Bill, citing the ongoing Madhyamik examination.
Source: EOI
