Anit Thapa resigns as Chief Executive of GTA

Anit Thapa, the Chief Executive of Gorkhaland Territorial Administration. File.

| Photo Credit: DEBASISH BHADURI

Anit Thapa, the Chief Executive of Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA) resigned from his post on Wednesday (June 17, 2026).GTA, a regional autonomous body formed as a tripartite agreement between Centre, State and Gorkha Janamukti Morcha in 2011 has been functioning for the past two decades.Mr. Thapa, whose party Bharatiya Gorkha Prajatantrik Morcha was an ally of Trinamool Congress urged Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari to work towards fulfilling promises made to the Gorkhas.Anit Thapa took up the post of GTA chief in 2022 after elections to the regional autonomous body. The BGPM, in alliance with Trinamool Congress, won 27 out of 45 seats. He had one more year remaining in the post. The resignation of Mr. Thapa comes a day after West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari visited Darjeeling hills and raised the issue of ‘corruption’ in the GTA.“There is corruption in the GTA in the hills. We will investigate the corruption and send all the thieves to jail,” the Chief Minister had said on Tuesday (June 16, 2026). Mr. Thapa welcomed the investigation in the GTA and said that a negative perception is being projected about the regional body. “A new government has come to the State. Naturally, the people of the hills and the State have confidence in this government. But this government does not want to give importance to the GTA formed through a tripartite meeting. I do not see any reason to cling to office in this situation,” Mr. Thapa said in a video message.GTA started functioning from 2011, replacing the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council, which was established in 1988. The administrative domain of the GTA mainly consists of various subdivisions and areas of Darjeeling and Kalimpong districts. The GTA has administrative and financial powers over about 59 departments including education, health, agriculture, tourism, and public works.In the 2026 Assembly polls, the BJP won all the three seats in the Darjeeling hills. The BJP had allied with Gorkha Janmukti Morcha for the recently concluded assembly polls. Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari had acknowledged that the people of Darjeeling hills had voted for the BJP over the past two decades and promised development in the hills.After the BJP came to power in West Bengal in May 2026, Chairpersons of several civic bodies including Kolkata Municipal Corporation and Bidhannagar Municipal Corporation had resigned prompting the State government to appoint administrators to run these bodies. These civic bodies were administered by boards run by Trinamool Congress. Published - June 17, 2026 08:43 pm IST