Subhash Ghisingh
| Subhash Ghisingh | |
|---|---|
| Born |
June 22, 1936 Manju Tea Estate, Darjeeling, British India |
| Died | January 29, 2015 (aged 78) New Delhi |
| Occupation | Politician |
| Spouse(s) | Dhan Kumari |
Subhash Ghisingh (Nepali: सुवास घिसिङ) was the leader of Gorkha National Liberation Front (GNLF) which he founded in 1980. He was the chairman of the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council in West Bengal, India from 1988 to 2008. He spearheaded the Gorkhaland movement in the 1980s.
The Gorkhaland movement grew from the demand of ethnic Gorkha (Nepali) living in Darjeeling District of West Bengal for a separate state. The Gorkhaland National Liberation Front led the movement, which disrupted the district with massive violence between 1986 and 1988. The issue was resolved, at least temporarily, in 1988 with the establishment of the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council within West Bengal.
Subhash Ghisingh was born on 22 June 1936 at Manju Tea Estate, near Mirik, in Darjeeling district. While a student of Class IX in St. Robert's High School, Darjeeling, his father died. As a result, he left school and joined the Gorkha Rifles of the Indian Army as a soldier in 1954. He completed his matriculation in 1959 while in the army, but quit the army in 1960 and returned to Darjeeling.
After working as a teacher in Tindharia Bangla Primary School for about a year, he enrolled at Kalimpong Junior BT College in 1961. As result of an altercation with the college principal, he left the college. He joined Darjeeling Government College and passed the Pre-University Arts degree in 1963.
While a second-year B.A. student, he was arrested for participating in a political agitation against the poor conditions of the hills. He then had to quit studies. He was then the general secretary of Tarun Sangh. It was the beginning of a long political career.
In 1968, Ghisingh became vocal on issues concerning the hills and formed a political outfit Nilo Jhanda (Blue Flag) to further the cause. On 22 April 1979, for the first time, he raised the demand for a separate state for the Nepali-speaking people of the Darjeeling hills. He was highly believed to be an agent of the Research and Analysis Wing. On 5 April 1980, he demanded the formation of Gorkhaland, a separate state for the Gorkhas within India. He formed the Gorkha National Liberation Front to achieve statehood. After a prolonged struggle marked by much bloodshed, on 22 August 1988, he signed an agreement with the state and the central governments for the creation of the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council, a semi-autonomous body.
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