Dipen Thakuri is new Darjeeling Municipality chairman

DARJEELING,: Ward no. 4 councillor Dipen Thakuri from Bharatiya Gorkha Prajatantrik Morcha (BGPM) was on Monday endorsed as the new chairman of Darjeeling Municipality.

This development comes after chairman Ritesh Portel from Hamro Party was ousted from his post after a floor test was done where the BGPM and their alliance proved their majority.

Councillors from Hamro Party and GJM did not attend the meeting on Monday called for deciding the new Darjeeling Municipality chairman.

“We will move forward with this new responsibility and work for the betterment of Darjeeling. The oath taking ceremony will be held on Tuesday after which I will take charge on Thursday,” said new chairman Dipen Thakuri.

The Darjeeling civic body was being run by Hamro Party after they swept the civic poll last year winning 18 out of the total of 32 seats while the BGPM had won 9 seats.  However, the equation had changed with six Hamro Party councillors joining the BGPM and demanding a floor test to be held to prove their majority.

The BGPM and TMC alliance have 16 councillors while the Hamro Party have 15 councillors in alliance of the Gorkha Janmukti Morcha. One seat (ward 24) is vacant after BGPM councillor Amar Lama resigned to unsuccessfully contest the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration election held in June last year. The Morcha had won three seats and two seats were bagged by the TMC in the civic polls.

After welcoming the new chairman at the BGPM party office, party president Anit Thapa announced Pratibha Tamang Rai as the vice chairperson of Darjeeling Municipality.

On the other hand, HP leader Ajoy Edwards, who was seen with GJM president Bimal Gurung today, said: “We will act as a strong opposition and the new board among other things should work on regularization of illegal buildings or demolish it. If that is not done we will go to court.”

Edwards added that the process of a court case was already going for the disqualification of three ward councillors in the Darjeeling Municipality. We will also ask for election to be held for ward no. 24 which is presently vacant, he said.

GJM president Bimal Gurung maintained that they did not attend the meeting as they did not like to be in a place where they had no importance. We will work with the Hamro Party as a strong opposition, he said.