DARJEELING, INDIA, Feb 25, Retuer: Indian troops killed a Gurkha separatist during a clash in northeast India, police said on Thursday.
They said four troops were critically wounded when their truck ran over a landmine in the Darjeeling tea district in West Bengal state on Wednesday.
The troops were returning from operations in nearby areas where they had arrested six separatists and recovered 42 rifles during a gunfight in which another Gurkha was killed.
More than 130 people have been killed and 3,000 arrested in a 22month campaign for autonomy by the Gurkha National Liberation Front.
Front leader Subhas Ghising called for a 40day general strike on February 10 after the Indian government rejected their demand for a separate state and offered instead to set up an elected Hill Council with limited autonomy.
Article extracted from this publication >> March 4, 1988
