NO MONKEY BUSINESS PLEASE!

 By Barun Roy

I remember quite clearly the fateful day in the month of April, 1998 when suddenly an Ayatollah styled verdict of Subash Ghisingh the then self-proclaimed Father of the Indian Gorkhas and the President of the Gorkha National Liberation Front banned Sunchari, a fledgling Nepali daily when its editor, the defiant Dr. Kumar Pradhan wrote critically of the DGHC failure to live up to the expectation of the people. Sunchari was declared anti-Gorkha. The next day of the ban, vehicles transporting Sunchari to the Hills from Siliguri were stopped, the drivers roughed up and the newspapers burnt! This took place almost everywhere in Darjeeling Hills, so much so that the newspaper vendors closed shop and prayed silently for their personal safety. Both The Telegraph and The Statesman remained silent almost as if nothing had happened. The opposition called for a strike and R. B. Rai, the then prominent leader from the newly formed Communist Party of the Revolutionary Marxists walked up and down the main bazaar selling ‘Sunchari’. I joined him personally, distributing and selling with him ‘Sunchari’ in defiance to Subash Ghisingh. In a meeting with the then Superintendent of Police later, I even asked what if the ban were to last indefinitely, freedom of press would severely be restrained. He responded saying that he could not answer ‘such hypothetical questions’. Darjeeling Police did not take any action. Sunchari remained banned and I for one could do nothing but publish a cartoon on the April 1998 issue of Beacon. And the rest as they say is History!

Or is it!

On the evening of January 25 this year, Gorkha Janmukti Morcha took a decision to ‘request people from refraining to buy and read’ Himalaya Darpan from January 26 to February 2. The questions of why and how left aside, the vendors, uninformed of the GJM verdict, sold Himalaya Darpan on the 26^th all over the Hills. The GJM verdict, itself coming to the fore only on 27^th, when I personally reported through this very blog the first news of Himalaya Darpan being banned. The 26^th Jan issue of Himalaya Darpan had featured the Opposition statement condemning the ban of Himalaya Darpan. The 26^th of January being a holiday there were no issue on the 27^th of January. Today however, when the 28^th January issue of Himalaya Darpan with the Bimal Gurung statement, “We have not banned Himalaya Darpan”, came out, the vendors convinced that the GJM had called back its ban on the Nepali daily set out on their daily business. However, only to be ‘forcefully’ requested not to sale the paper. The cadres and the Town Committee of the GJM had to be asked to read Himalaya Darpan itself to realize that their own President had lifted the ban!  The Town Committee later issued a poster near the Sumeru Manch informing people that under ‘Humanitarian Ground’ the vendors were being allowed to sell the Newspaper. The Town Committee of the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha went to the extent of saying that it had nothing against the other reporters of Himalaya Darpan they were only against the unethical slant that Shibu Chettri had displayed in his work. The people did buy Himalaya Darpan but also for once looked over their shoulders.

Gorkha Tribal Instruments

 An Exclusive from Roshan Pradhan, South Sikkim

The instrument in the front is the leather made musical instrument that is usually used in  celebrations by Tamang tribals called domphu one that is hanging with coloured clothes rapped  is also made of leather  tighten on metal frame is also a musical instrument  but is  used as to sent an intimation . different types /rhythms of  beats signifies whether it is a wedding or a death rituals. It is used mostly by Limbu tribals , Tamangs and Buddhist people. It is called nagara . It is in pair and has 2 short sticks to beat the both .It the old day when the population was less and scattered the nagara used to be the mode to communication especially  to inform the relative and surround about the death of their dear one. The smoke that come from the local plant called tetypati is an sign of welcome and believed to cast off evil sprite from the visitor  body.

Darjeeling Press Guild Condemns Himalaya Darpan Ban!

Darjeeling Jan 28, 5:40 PM IST: The newly formed Press Guild of Darjeeling condemned the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha’s banning of the Nepali daily Himalaya Darpan vehemently. In this article Darjeeling Press Guild condemns the GJM move as an oppressive move.

FREEDOM OF PRESS

The political party which has constantly been playing the self proclaimed role of liberator, harbinger of democracy has finally shed its mask and sent democracy for a six. “Self constraint and Gandhism,” virtues that could not be sustained for too long.

The Gorkha Janmukti Morcha on January 25, issued a diktat that all should abstain from reading the Himalaya Darpan Sambad Patra- the largest circulated Nepali vernacular daily, allegedly for its “one-sided” news presentation from the 26^th January till the 2^nd February 2008. On the 26^th January there were silent threats to the paper vendors not to display the paper in the news stalls in Darjeeling. However in Kalimpong, defying this undemocratic diktat Himalaya Darpan sold like hot cakes.

Darjeeling Youths starts Gorkha Welfare Society in Delhi

Darjeeling, Jan 28, 3:50 PM IST: Youths from Darjeeling and the surrounding hills who are working in New Delhi have come together to start a Social Society to help all the people from Darjeeling and other parts who comes to Delhi for work. The Social Society will be known as Gorkha Welfare Society. In a communication to us, the Gorkha Welfare Society stated its main vision was to mold the society as a non-political and non-profitable social body, which will collectively address educational, employment and social issues concerning the Gorkhas today and will also act as a platform to nurture and promote culture, art, language, sports and other talents. The organization will consist of general members, an executive body and an Advisory panel. A general member will be enrolled on payment of a nominal annual membership fee. An executive body would be formed from the general members on nomination basis. An advisory panel will consist of respected citizens of experience and wisdom who may or may not be a general member.

No Ban on Himalaya Darpan says Bimal Gurung

UNDISTRIBUTED HIMALAY DARPAN LYING AT THE HD OFFICE PREMISES

Darjeeling Jan 28, 3:20 PM IST: [HB Exclusive] Gorkha Janmukti Morcha President today declared that there were no ban on Himalaya Darpan and that the so called ban had been a ‘Public outcry over the unethical journalism that had been practiced by Shibu Chettri of Himalaya Darpan.’ He requested people not be overzealous over the issue but requested journalists to maintain the dignity of their profession.” Incidentally, the newspaper sellers before Bata in the main market in the town today were stopped from selling Himalaya Darpan by GJM cadres. After much arguments the members of the GJM Town Committee ultimately allowed the sell of Himalaya Darpan on Humanitarian Grounds. However, still requesting the general people from refraining from buy it. Some leaders of the GJM still unknown to the call of their President were seen imposing ban on some newspaper vendors but later stopped when told by this reporter of the withdrawal of the ban. Eminent leaders of the party including the core members of the Central Committee expressed surprise at such a move by their own party. Dr. Harkabahadur Chettri from Kalimpong said he had no idea of the ban and that even if such thing had indeed taken place should be refrained from. “Blocking the distribution of newspapers would only lead to negative effect upon the people,” he said from Kalimpong.

Meanwhile, Deepak Gurung, President, Gorkha National Liberation Front, Darjeeling Branch protested the ban of the Nepali daily as unconstitutional and against the very ethos of Democracy. When asked to comment on the 1999 banning of Sunchari another Nepali daily by Subash Ghisingh, President, GNLF, he refused to comment saying that the two incidents could not be parallelized. “Sunchari deserved to be banned but not Himalay Darpan,” he said. Ratna Bahadur Rai, of the Communist Party of the Revolutionary Marxists was also quick to protest the ban saying that this was bound to happen as GJM and the GNLF was of the same mold.

No reactions from Himalaya Darpan could be ascertained as concerned officials could not be reached at the Himalaya Darpan Darjeeling Offices. However, the piles of undistributed Himalaya Darpan at the office was seen.