Kolkata, Dec 16 (IANS) The West Bengal government Wednesday said the ongoing agitation by the Gorkha Janamukti Morcha (GJM) for a separate Gorkhaland state could affect the congenial environment before the Dec 21 tripartite meeting in Darjeeling.
“The ongoing fast-unto-death and other agitations staged by the GJM supporters might affect the environment before the tripartite talks,” state Chief Secretary Ashok Mohan Chakraborty told reporters here.

He said the GJM leadership cannot simultaneously continue the protests and hold tripartite talks over the Gorkhaland issue.

“Either they have to carry on with their agitation or they have to take part in the process of tripartite dialogue. Both can’t go hand in hand,” Chakraborty made it clear.

“They have to choose either of these two,” he said.

GJM activists, headed by their party president Bimal Gurung, have been pressing for a separate Gorkhaland state out of the state’s northern region.

The GJM leadership Tuesday said they would carry out blockades in front of government offices in West Bengal’s Darjeeling Hills to press their separate Gorkhaland state demand.