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Kalimpong, April 3: The Gorkha Janmukti Morcha today forced an indefinite closure of the Kalimpong Municipality to seek the resignation of the C.K. Kumai-headed GNLF board.

Women activists of the Morcha here laid siege to the municipality office since morning, shouting slogans against Kumai and demanding his resignation. Later, the Morcha decided to close the office till Kumai resigned or a fresh floor test against the present board held.

However, civic employees will be able to collect their salaries till noon tomorrow. Emergency services like health and garbage collection have been exempted from the purview of the closure.

Harka Bahadur Chhetri, a central committee member of the Morcha, said: “We fear that if the present board is allowed to function, it would provide elements loyal to the GNLF the opportunity to remove important files.”

Kumai resumed office yesterday after over one-and-half months of absence, ostensibly on “medical” grounds. Kumai’s “leave” had started the same time in February when other senior GNLF leaders left town in the wake of the Morcha agitation against Subash Ghisingh and the Sixth Schedule bill.

Sources said Kumai told some ward commissioners that under no circumstances would he resign before July end since according to municipality rules, a no-trust motion against a board can only be brought after six months of the previous one.

A no-confidence motion brought by the Opposition against the GNLF-run board on January 24 had been defeated. The Morcha had alleged that the January floor test was illegal.

“The voting had taken place in the absence of a government observer. Moreover, since Section 144 had been clamped in the locality, we could not attend the board meeting,” said Norden Lama, a Morcha member and commissioner of Ward 7.

Earlier this week, the Morcha had written to Darjeeling district magistrate Rajesh Pandey urging him to declare the January floor test null and void.

Kumai could not be contacted despite repeated attempts .