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Siliguri, Jan. 11: The GNLF-led board of the Kalimpong Municipality risks being toppled after 13 ward commissioners served a no-confidence notice against its chairman C.K. Kumai today.

Nine of the 13 belong to the GNLF.

Confirming the receipt of the notice, Kumai told The Telegraph from Kalimpong that he would call a board meeting “as soon as possible” for the floor test. “I am confident that the notice will fail the test,” he added.

In the 23-member civic board, the GNLF has 19 commissioners while the rest are Independents. Kumai needs the support of a simple majority— fifty per cent of members present — to retain his board.

The nine GNLF commissioners are Deeparani Thakuri, Poonam Ghisingh, Tikaram Chettri, Mridula Subba, Pasang Sherpa, Lhamu Sherpa, Kanta Rai, Kalpana Darnal and Uden Bhutia. Three of the Independent signatories — Bijay Sundas, Praveen Rampal and former chairman Maximus Kalikote — have since joined the recently formed Gorkha Janmukti Morcha.

Samuel Gurung, the secretary of the Morcha’s Kalimpong branch, said all the nine GNLF rebels will be formally inducted into the party in the presence of its president Bimal Gurung in Darjeeling on Monday. “Today’s development will give an impetus to the Gorkhaland movement,” he added.

Norden Lama, the fourth Independent commissioner, said given the political situation in the hills, the revolt was expected. “This signifies the impending downfall of the GNLF,” he added.

Dawa Pakhrin, the Kalimpong branch committee president of the GNLF, refused comment. “I am yet to see the names of the signatories,” he said. “I will speak only after that.”

The Morcha was formed around three months ago and since then has posed a challenge to Subash Ghisingh’s GNLF. Gurung’s party has been garnering support against the Sixth Schedule bill, the main architect of which has been Ghisingh. It has been urging residents to accept nothing short of Gorkhaland. After its introduction in Parliament in November, the Sixth Schedule bill was sent to the Standing Committee on Home Affairs after a section of MPs felt that there were a lot of grievances against the special status to be conferred on the Darjeeling hills. To the Morcha, it had come as a first round of victory as a bill sent to the standing committee generally means it can be shelved for months.

Two days ago, there were reports that the Prime Minister was toying with the idea of setting up a Second States Reorganisation Commission to see to the demands for newer states. To the supporters of Gorkhaland, which includes the Morcha, this has been a major boost.