The injured, included Special IG (Jalpaiguri Range) Zulfiqar Hassan and the District Superintendant of Police Manoj Verma.

Police had to resort to firing several rounds in the air, besides lobbing tear gas shells and leading a lathi-charge, Verma told The Indian Express.

“We had anticipated trouble during the bandh. However, things got out of hand when the GJM took out a huge rally on Friday. Both sides had firearms and sharp-edged weapons including khukris and swords. Police teams, which rushed in, were assaulted by the agitators. At the moment, we are not able to say how many civilians were injured, but the number is high. They have been admitted to various hospitals,” Verma said.

Police said the maximum injuries were in Nagrakata, while clashes raged in Malbazar and Meteli. Verma said one person has been arrested with firearms and live cartridges. He added that the situation was tense, but under control following the deployment of a massive police contingent.

IGP (Law & Order) Raj Kanojia said 15 people have been arrested in connection to the clashes. In a bid to increase police back-up during the clashes, the Darjeeling police were summoned from the neigbouring district.

Darjeeling SP Rahul Srivastav said he had led a police contingent to Malbazar, around 80 km from Darjeeling to assist in controlling the mob.

Prohibitory orders under Section 144 CrPC had been clamped since Thursday night following a 24-hour bandh call by the Akhil Bharatiya Adivasi Vikas Parishad (ABAVP) to prevent the GJM from taking out the rally, IGP (Law & Order) Raj Kanojia said in Kolkata.

“Trouble has been brewing since several days now. However, the GJM rally broke through the police barricades,” Kanojia said.

Police said a large mob numbering several hundred, which included ABAVP supporters, had gathered in Malbazar at two places. “The GJM rally angered the ABAVP bandh enforcers and the public, and clashes erupted almost immediately. Besides the ABAVP, we suspect that Bengali organisations like Amra Bangalee and Jana Jagaran Manch were also involved in clashing with the GJM rallyists,” a police officer said.

The Adivasis, along with the non-Nepali residents of the plains, are against the GJM’s bid to include their areas along with the Darjeeling Hills in their demand for a separate Gorkhaland. In the first week of December, a similar clash had erupted in Hamiltonganj when GJM supporters sought to enforce their shutdown call for government offices. More than 30 people on both sides were injured, including 10 policemen.

The Hamiltonganj clash had nearly derailed the ongoing tripartite talks to find a solution to the Hills issue, with the Morcha demanding that several anti-GJM persons involved in the clash be arrested as a precondition to the participation. This time, Morcha general secretary Roshan Giri told The Indian Express the Nagrakata clashes would not affect the talks.

“We have faxed a letter to the Home Minister and the Union Home Secretary highlighting the collusion between the adivasis and the Jalpaiguri administration. Our women’s wing, the Gorkha Narimukti Morcha, had prior permission to take out a rally in Nagrakata, but the CPM cadres instigated the adivasis and got the police to barricade entry points. They attacked the women rallyists with weapons resulting in injuries to more than 20 of our supporters. They also ransacked several Nepali homes,” Giri said.