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Sikkim panel to study constitutional amendment demands

The Sikkim government has set up a special committee to examine the demands for constitutional amendments raised by political parties to safeguard the interest of different ethnic groups in the erstwhile Himalayan kingdom.

State Chief Minister and Sikkim Democratic Front supremo Pawan Chamling indicated in the state assembly last week that he would lead a joint delegation of different parties to Delhi to press for the amendments approved by the committee.

The eleven-member committee, headed by state health minister D D Bhutia, would study proposals for amendment of Section 7 (1a) of the Representation of People's Act (1950) and Section 5 (a) of the RPA (1951) and the Sikkim Scheduled Tribe Order (1978).

It will have members from different spheres of life. The government has asked opposition Sikkim Sangram Parishad to suggest two names.

The announcement came in the wake of the SSP's abortive move to re-introduce the 'parity' system of reservation in assembly seats for the state's three ethnic communities - Bhutia, Lepcha and Nepali - during last week's six-day session of the assembly. The SSP wanted 16 seats each for the tribals (Bhutia and Lepcha together) and Nepalese, as prevalent during the rule of the Chogyal.

There are 32 seats in the state assembly, of which the ruling SDF has 25 while the opposition SSP has seven.

The proposal drew flak from pro-Nepali groups like the Sikkim Nepali Ekta Sanghatan, which wants proportionate representation for various communities.

Presently, 12 seats are reserved for Bhutias and Lepchas, two for scheduled castes and one for the Sangha (monasteries) while the rest are open to all.

According to SNES president and former state chief secretary P K Pradhan, the Chogyal introduced the parity system in 1952. The Nepalese tolerated the discriminatory system despite the fact that they constituted 80 per cent of the kingdom's population.

Pradhan said, "Prior to the kingdom's merger with the India in 1975, the most important political plank during the pro-democracy movement in 1973 was the abolition of the parity system. The historic May 8, 1973 tripartite agreement between the Chogyal, political parties in Sikkim and the government of India paved the way for the kingdom's merger with India in 1975."

According to the agreement and the following constitutional amendment and insertion of Article 371 (f) of the constitution, 16 seats in the state assembly each were reserved for the Bhutias and Lepchas, including one for the state's monasteries, and the ethnic Nepalese, including one for the scheduled castes.

In 1979, the seats meant for the Nepalese were struck down and those reserved for Bhutias-Lepchas were brought down to 13 from 16 and the SSTO was introduced.

The Bhutias want an amendment to the SSTO, which categorises non-Bhutia ethnic groups like Sherpas, Yolmos, Dukpas, Chumbipas, Dopthapas, Kagateys and Tibetans as Bhutias. It said these communities should be separately identified as tribals.

UNI

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