No internal differences in SHRP: Dr. Subba

GANGTOK, Feb 22: Sikkim Himali Rajya Parishad (SHRP) president Dr. AD Subba today denied any 'internal party differences' and said that nobody should be blamed for aborted rally on February 19.

SHRP had planned a protest rally on February 19 at Gangtok but had to be aborted due to, as claimed by its party general secretary, 'groupism' among the party leaders. The embarrassment due to the grounding of the rally was compounded later in the same afternoon when six SHRP worker were arrested by Gangtok police for allegedly pelting the vehicle of Chief Minister's political secretary KT Gyalsten with bricks.

Speaking at a press meet today here at the party head office, Dr. Subba went at length to clarify that the rally had not been called off due to the reasons specified by his general secretary but for 'three other main reasons'.

"The main reason for the calling off the rally was that I was not present. I had to go outside Sikkim for urgent party works. I was also informed by my people from South and West districts that they would not join the rally in my absence. If there is no party president, they said that they will not join other leaders in the rally", said SHRP president.

"Another reason was that that the party had received information that some supporters of the ruling Sikkim Democratic Front (SDF) party will be joining the rally posing as SHRP members and then attack the police with marble pellets fired from catapults. They wanted to assault the police during the rally so that police then retaliated and arrest all the SHRP leaders", said Dr. Subba.

"The third reason was over the boiling emotions prevailing on members of our party from North district. Sixty percent of our hardcore supporters and leaders from North Sikkim are presently arrested by police. The remaining forty percent are seething with rage and anything may have happened in the rally. Judging their emotional rage and the above two main reasons, I immediately called the party senior vice president TB Thatal and directed him to call off the rally", concluded Dr. Subba.

Commenting on the reasons given by the party general secretary Tara Shrestha over the derailment of the rally, the SHRP president stressed that no groupism exists in the party and everybody is working in a disciplined manner.

It may be recalled that Mr. Shrestha had blamed some senior party leaders for the rally farce. He had also demanded the resignation of such party functionaries on moral grounds.

However, Dr. Subba softened the allegations of his general secretary cum spokesperson as 'purely personal statements'. His (Mr. Shrestha) statements are purely personal and does not reflect the views of the party or the party president, he said.

"Mr. Shrestha was not present at the party office in Tadong on that day. How could he have made such statements without informing the party president? There is no question of anybody being expelled or submitting resignations", said Dr. Subbba. He also added that no disciplinary action will be taken against Mr. Shrestha.

Over the allegations hurled on his party workers for assaulting Mr. Gyalsten on February 19, Dr. Subba said that it has not been proved that it was SHRP members who had actually thrown bricks. How could our party youths do this from the party office?, he countered.