Darjeeling:Complete normalcy returns after 105 days of shutdown, Gurung thanks Rajnath Singh for convening tripartite meeting

Darjeeling/Siliguri, Sep 27: At last the denizens of the Hills of Darjeeling got a respite from the indefinite strike as life returned to normal from 6 AM this morning following lifting of the 104-day-old Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM)-sponsored shutdown in support of its demand of Gorkhaland. GJM supremo Bimal Gurung called off indefinite the shutdown on the 105th day today, responding to Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh's appeal after the latter directed the Central Home Decretary to convene a tripartite meeting within a fortnight on Darjeeling's various political and economic issues. In a recorded audio message, GJM president Bimal Gurung, evading arrest by West Bengal police following a lookout notice, last night declared the lifting of the indefinite strike from 6 AM today from an undisclosed location, said party spokesperson Jyoti Rai. Responding to the appeal, Mr Gurung in a recorded audio message called off the strike and said, " We must make a conducive atmosphere for the tripartite talk. " Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh asked the Union Home Secretary to convene a meeting of all three parties — Centre, West Bengal Government and the GJM— within a fortnight for discussion. UNI