Himalayan Guardian Aug 31, 2011

Maoist leader Baburam Bhattarai is Nepal’s new PM

FOREIGN POLICY TO BE BASED ON ‘PANCHASHEEL’

RP Sharma

Kathmandu, Aug 30: Nepal’s newly-elected Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai, a senior Maoist leader, is likely to follow a policy of maintaining equidistance between its two giants – India and China.

An alumnus of New Delhi’s Jawaharlal’s Nehru University (JNU), however, said the former Himalayan kingdom’s relations with India should be based on principles enunciated in the ‘Panchasheel’, which stressed on mutual respect of territorial integrity and sovereignty of the countries in the region, including India and China.

Nepal participated in the Asian-African Conference held in Bandung in Indonesia in 1955, which laid emphasis on the five principles of peaceful coexistence also known as Panchasheel.

“We should also maintain balanced relations with both the neighbours (India and China) and that should be based on theory of Panchasheel,” Bhattarai said after being elected Prime Minister on Sunday.

 “This is the last opportunity,” Bhattarai told the Parliament before the vote on Sunday. “I am determined to complete the peace process and constitution drafting.”

Ending two weeks of uncertainty,  Bhattarai (57), vice chairman of Unified Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) and former finance minister

defeated his Nepali Congress rival Ram Chandra Poudel by a margin of 105 votes.

Bhattarai secured support of 340 members of the 594-member parliament.

Bhattarai’s victory became certain prior to voting as United Democratic Madeshi Forum (UDMF), the conglomeration of five Madhesi parties with 71 seats, announced its support to the Maoist leader.

Leaders of UDMF decided on extending support after Maoists agreed to a four point deal that included details on integration and rehabilitation of former Maoist combatants and making Nepal Army more inclusive. 

Bhattarai’s election follows resignation of his predecessor Jhalanath Khanal on August 15 to make way for a national consensus government. But since parties failed to arrive at consensus on government formation, the prime minister was elected through majority vote in parliament.

An alumnus of Delhi School of Planning and Architecture and Jawaharlal Nehru University, election of the farmer’s son from Gorkha to the top post is expected to speed up the stalled peace and constitution drafting processes.

GTA Bill likely to be tabled in Assembly this week

C. Tamang

Darjeeling, Aug 30: The much-awaited legislation to set up the the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA) in Darjeeling is likely to be tabled in the West Bengal Assembly later this week.

Sources said according to the government’s chief whip Sobhondeb Chattopadhaya the GTA Bill is likely to be tabled in the Assembly on September 2.

“We have a plan to table the GTA bill on September 2,” he told a national daily. He said after the Assembly passes the Bill it will be sent to the standing committee for a review.

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who has kept the hill affairs portfolio with her, is expected to table the GTA in the House anytime this week.

Gorkha Janmukti Morchas President Bimal Gurung has urged the authorities to expedite the formation of the GTA to enable development works to take place in the hills at the earliest.

Sub-SAARC group in the offing

Rethinking on regional cooperation

Himalayan News Network

New Delhi, Aug 30: Formation of a sub-SAARC group consisting India, Nepal, Bangladesh and Bhutan is likely to take place soon.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is expected to discuss the sub-regional proposal on trade with Sheikh Hasina during his visit to Dhaka next month.

“There is rethinking on the whole paradigm of regional cooperation,” a Bangladesh official who recently visited Dehi said.

“We are within Saarc and ultimately want that forum to succeed, but we are now also working to take forward a sub-regional trade movement. This looks promising and could move at a much faster pace,” Bangladesh commerce minister Farouk Khan said.

South Asian free trade has been affected by the relations between India and Pakistan. The latter refuses to give India the most favoured nation status, while India views all investment proposals from Pakistan with suspicion.

However, trade among India, Bangladesh, Bhutan and Sri Lanka are on a more even keel. India allows Nepal and Bhutan duty free access to its market for all their manufactured goods and allows duty free transit of any imports from these countries.

 “We want to cash in on the relationship between these four nations… Trade will be in goods, services and in energy resources,” Khan said. Bangladesh’s High Commissioner to India, Tariq Karim, is on a visit to Bhutan to take the move to forge a sub-regional trade movement forward.

Bangladesh wants a sub-regional pact for road and rail connectivity, electric grid and water resources management with India, Nepal and Bhutan.

Ranjan Mathai, the newly appointed India’s foreign secretary, is scheduled to arrive Nepal in the third week of September next month, reports said.

 “The challenges were dealing with our foreign policy and its outreach through diplomacy in a holistic way, which takes care of our political and strategic interests, combines the economic and commercial interests of the country, and keeps in mind also the cultural image of the country and the way in which we portray ourselves in the world,” Mathai said while briefing the media.

Bhutan-Singapore air links soon

T. Dem

Thimphu, Aug 30: Bhutan and Singapore will establish an air services agreement (ASA) next week, according to the department of civil aviation (DCA).

The agreement will allow national airline, Drukair and upcoming private airline, Tashi Air, the rights to fly to Singapore. A civil aviation team from Singapore will arrive in the country to work out technical details of the ASA, prior to a final agreement.

Drukair plans to operate to Singapore twice a week from March next year, according to the airline's commercial manager, Tshering Penjor. But he said that this would also depend on when Drukair is able to acquire a third airbus jet. Drukair will also have the rights to operate to Singapore through Kolkata, India and Dhaka, Bangladesh.

A representative for Tashi Air said that its international destinations will only be worked out once the airline's domestic obligations are fulfilled. The private airline's aircraft is expected to arrive in the first week of October.

Tibetan monks to be tried for ‘murder’

Himalayan News Network

Beijing, Aug 30: Three monks in a Tibetan region of China will go on trial for murder next week over the death by self-immolation of another monk in March, the state-run Xinhua news agency reported on Friday.

The three have been charged with “plotting, instigating and assisting in” the death of their fellow monk at the Kirti Tibetan Buddhist monastery, Xinhua quoted the Maerkang County People’s Court as saying in a statement.

A fourth monk has also been accused of moving and hiding Phuntsog, the man who had set himself alight – thus preventing emergency treatment and leading to his death, it said.

The young monk set himself on fire on March 16, the third anniversary of anti-government rioting in Lhasa. His death triggered protests, prompting a clampdown by authorities around the monastery in Sichuan province.

But the New York-based International Campaign for Tibet said that the monks had rescued Phuntsog from police, who had begun beating him after extinguishing the flames, and took him to the monastery before returning him to hospital.

Phuntsog was the second monk at Kirti to set himself on fire since the anti-Chinese riots in Lhasa of March 2008, the bloodiest in Tibet in 20 years.

According to the London-based Free Tibet rights group, citing local contacts, that monk was heard to shout just before setting himself alight, “We Tibetan people want freedom", “Long live the Dalai Lama” and “Let the Dalai Lama return to Tibet”.

Many Tibetans in China are angry about what they view as increasing domination by China’s majority Han ethnic group, and accuse the government of trying to dilute their culture.

Beijing removes hardline Chinese official from Tibet

Lhasa, Aug 30: Hardline Chinese official Zhang Qingli (60) known for his tough stance against the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama has been removed from his post as Communist Party chief of restive Tibet and moved to Heibei, a Catholic-inhabited province near Beijing.

Zhang was in charge of Tibet in 2008 when protests in Lhasa gave way to deadly riots that rippled across other ethnic Tibetan areas. After the protests, he called the Dalai Lama a “jackal in Buddhist monk’s robes.”

Nepal’s apex court extends Parliament deadline

RP Sharma

Kathmandu, Aug 30:  Nepal's top court has upheld the Communist-led government''s decision to amend the interim constitution to extending the term of parliament by three months on May 29 which expires on August 31.

The Supreme Court's five-member special bench of Chief Justice Khil Raj issued the ruling, citing the doctrine of necessity, according to court sources, PTI reported.

The apex court scrapped a writ petition challenging the decision of parliamemt to extend its term for three months.

Last time the term of the parliament was extended for three months that will expire on August 31 if Parliament fails to endorse the bill.

Uttarakhand Gorkhas in OBC list

Himalayan News Network

Dehradun, Aug 30: The Gorkhas of Uttarakhand have enlisted in the Central list of OBCs, according to a Government of India (GoI) notification dated June 16, 2011.

However, Bahuns and Chettris (Brahmins and Kshatriya), who belong to the Gorkha community have not been included in the OBC (Other Backward Classes) list.

Castes/ communities are ordinarily included in the Central List of OBCs on the advice of National Commission for Backward Classes. No advice for inclusion of Brahmins and Khatris under Gorkha community for Uttarakhand has been received, according to reports.

This information was given by the Minister of State for Social Justice & Empowerment, Shri D. Napoleon in a written reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha. (PIB)

Buddhist community in Darjeeling becoming more assertive

C. Tamang

Darjeeling, Aug 30: The Buddhist community in Darjeeling hills have demanded Minority Concentrated District (MCD) status for speedy development of the region.

The All Buddhist Minority Welfare Association President MS Bomzon claims that the population of religious minorities in Darjeeling which include Buddhists, Muslims and Christians is around 40 per cent.

“The state government has come up with a policy to declare a particular district Minority Concentrated District (MCD) if the minorities form 25-30 per cent of the population. But the same status has not been extended to Darjeeling district despite its higher concentration of minorities,” said Bomzon.

Majority of Buddhists in the hills come from Bhutia, Tamang, Lepcha, Tibetan, Sherpa and Gurung communities.

 “The government has accorded this status where the concentration of Muslim population is high. They have conveniently forgotten us,” said Bomzon. “An MCD status would entail benefits for construction of houses and stipends for education to minority members, among others.”

The Association has also demanded declaration of Buddha Purnima (Buddha’s birthday) as a government holiday and inclusion of one member from the Buddhist community from Darjeeling in the State Government’s Minority Commission.

R Moktan, an influential member of the Tamang community in Kalimpong, said the minority Buddhists in Darjeeling may also demand seat reservation in the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA) for protection of their political rights, preservation of their cultural heritage and economic development.

Sikkim Bhutia-Lepchas support Darjeeling Lepcha agitation

Himalayan News Network

Gangtok, Aug 30: The minority indigenous Bhutia-Lepcha tribals in Sikkim have supported the Lepchas of Darjeeling for their demand for setting up of Lepcha Development Council.

The Sikkim Bhutia-Lepcha Apex Community (SIBLAC), an umbrella organization of the Bhutia-Lepchas of Sikkim, who ruled the former Buddhist kingdom for more than  eight hundred years, during a meeting held here recently urged both the Centre and West Bengal Government to respond positively to the demand for a development body raised by the Lepcha Right Movement (LRM).

“The current movement of the Lepchas is not only the cry of this particular community, but a reflection of oppression of all the oppressed class of the society,” a SIBLAC press release said.

The Sikkim Lepcha Youth Association – SLYA (Renjyong Mutanchi Rong Ong Shejum ) has also lent their moral support to the LRM. Association President Ongden Tshering Lepcha during a meeting of the organsiation here last week said the demand for formation of Lepcha Development Council in Darjeeling genuine and as per the constitution.

While stating that the Lepchas are the original inhabitants of Darjeeling, Lepcha said fulfillment of the demand would not affect other communities in the hills.

Darjeeling Lepchas have been holding rallies in Kolkata since August 9 to press their demand.

Bhupendra Lepcha, convener of the LRM, said: “We have also lined up a series of agitation.”

“We will also start a mass indefinite hunger strike from September 19 in Darjeeling, Kalimpong, Mirik, Siliguri, Calcutta and Delhi,” said the LRM chief. Road and rail blockades and civil disobedience are part of the indefinite strike.

The LRM also has the support of the Indigenous Lepcha Tribal Association (ILTA), which has been in the forefront of espousing the community’s cause.

The Indigenous Lepcha Tribal Forum, which is the political arm of the ILTA, had earlier demanded reservation of seats for the community in the Gorkha Territorial Administration to ensure that they remained an integral part of the political system in their homeland.

Editorial

MINORITY RIGHTS

A Better Deal For Lepchas

The indigenous Lepchas of Darjeeling are now becoming more assertive and demanding a better deal from the State Government. Having been neglected for more than three decades by the Left Front Government in West Bengal the Lepchas, who consider themselves as the original inhabitants of Sikkim and Darjeeling, are hopeful that the Mamata Government would be more responsive to their plea which is for accelerated economic development for their community. The Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA) also needs to take a serious view of the educational and economic backwardness of this hill tribe and empower them politically and economically. The Lepchas themselves must rise from their slumber and actively participate in the democratic process.

While their brethrens are agitating in the heat in Kolkata for protection of their cultural, political and economic rights it is but natural for Sikkimese Bhutia-Lepchas to lend their support to the agitators. For centuries prior to the British intervention in Darjeeling in latter part of the 19thcentury the Lepchas and Bhutias of Sikkimese origin have been living amicably in undivided Sikkim, which include Darjeeling, Kalimpong and Kurseong. During the anti-Teesta hydro power agitation in Dzongu in northern Sikkim a few years back the Lepchas of Kalimpong lent active support to the anti-mega dam activists in Sikkim. In a democracy while the majority rules the minority must be protected. The minority Lepchas in Darjeeling, being the original inhabitants of that place, must be allowed to live with respect and dignity in the land of their origin.

Protect Gorkha identity, Dewan tells BGP

Balidan Diwas observed in Sikkim

By A Staff Reporter

Gangtok, Aug 30: Former secretary CP Dewan said the Bharatiya Gorkha Parisangh (BGP)’s main objective is to protect and preserve the identity of Gorkha community in the country and urged everyone to make the non-political organization strong.

Speaking at the 68th Balidan Diwas organized here recently by the BGP’s Sikkim unit, Dewan, who was the chief guest said, “We have to respect the contribution of martyrs who made their sacrifice so that India is free from the British rule.”

Sikkim BGP chief Kamal Gurung while addressing the gathering said there were still many Gorkha martyrs whose sacrifices for the country are not recognized and it is organisations such as the BGP which must record their contributions in history books.

Senior journalist Bijay Bantawa while presenting a seminar paper on contribution of Gorkha community to the nation said the BGP should always provide the right direction to the Gorkha community in the country. Bantawa said Major Durga Malla, a freedom fighter had sacrificed his life for India’s freedom.

Sikkim BGP secretary Prabin Khaling, in his address, said that the Parisangh has mannaged to trace out the ancestral home of Indian freedom fighter from Sikkim, Helen Lepha who was known as Sabitri Devi during her participation in the national movement.

"Her ancestral home has been traced out in South Sikkim and we have requested the state government to name the Namchi Central Park as Sabitri Devi park.We have received positive response from the government," said Khaling.

Migrants outnumber tribals in Manipur:Report

Himalayan News Network

Imphal, Aug 30:  Manipur Chief Minister O Ibobi Singh on Friday said the government will urge the Centre to re-introduce the Inner Line Permit(ILP) system or Inner Line (IL) Regulation in the State once the Cabinet takes a decision in this regard.

“Let the Cabinet first take a decision so that the government can urge the Centre,” said Ibobi while clarifying on a private members’ resolution by N Mangi on the re-introduction of ILP system in the State, a local daily reported.

Ibobi also expressed the need to take certain precautionary measures to monitor influx in the State, particularly in the border town of Moreh. Opposition leader Radhabinod Koijam said there will be a demographic and social change if the government fails to regulate the influx in the State.

“Every village in my constituency has a Myanmarese. They settle here after their marriage with the local girls,” Opposition MLA Morung Makunga, who wished to have a regulatory system in the State to monitor entry of migrants, said.

Makunga, who represents Tengnoupal constituency in Manipur’s Chandel district bordering Myanmar, claimed that the total number of voters in his constituency has been surprisingly risen from 21,000 to 40,000.

According to a report compiled by United Committee Manipur ‘Influx of Migrants into Manipur’, the number of migrants (7,04,488) outnumbered the State’s indigenous tribal population (6,70,782) while the majority indigenous Meetei was just 9,18,626 (2001 census).

Another opposition MLA RK Anand said the situation took a grim turn when the ILP system was removed from the State in November 1950. Since then, the number of migrants has increased at a rapid rate. Presently ILP Regulation was in force in three NE States – Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland and Mizoram.

Stapled visa issue not to hinder Indo-China relations: China

Bangalore, Aug 30: China says the issue of stapled visas will not come in the way of Indo-China relations.

"This issue (stapled visas) does not hinder our cooperation. Our cooperation is going on very well," said Zhang Yan, the Chinese Ambassador to India.

He said India and China are discussing ways to find a solution regarding Beijing's policy to issue stapled visas to residents of Arunachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir, PTI reported.

"This is the issue being discussed between the two governments. So, that means the two governments are working on it. So, once we have the solution, you will know. We are working on that," Zhang told PTI.

He replied in the affirmative when asked if India and China are "working" to review this policy, which has emerged as a sticky issue between the two countries.

 “Our cooperation is going on very well” and the stapled visa issue “does not hinder our cooperation,” the Chinese Ambassador said.

India had last month expressed unhappiness over the issuance of stapled visas by China to five sportspersons from Arunachal Pradesh with government sources, saying, "We are still searching for a de-stapler."

The Chinese Embassy had issued stapled visas to five karate players from Arunachal Pradesh preventing them from taking part in an international championship in China.

China started issuing stapled visas to people from Jammu and Kashmir from 2008.

INTERVIEW/Akhil Gogoi

“Anna is the movement that has mass support”

Akhil Gogoi, an RTI activist from Assam, has been part of activist Anna Hazare's inner circle since the last two years. In an interview with rediff.com's Prasanna D Zore, he explains how the core members of Team Anna swung into action and carried the movement forward when Hazare and his aides Kiran Bedi, Arvind Kejriwal and Manish Sisodia were arrested by the Delhi  police on August 16. Akhil is one of the 22 members who form the core group of Team Anna.

Question: The movement not only moved ahead but blossomed after Anna Hazare's arrest. How did that happen?

Answer: Anna doesn't work for the propagation of the movement. He is the movement. There are 22 members in the core committee who swung into action once Annaji and others were arrested. This core team communicates with the media and it is this team that ran the movement from behind the scenes after Anna's arrest.

Q: What did you actually do? Could you tell us the sequence of steps you undertook to take the movement forward?

A: Firstly, we contacted the various mass movements in progress across the country and asked them to lend us their support. Then the core committee took a policy decision to methodically implement our plan of action in Annaji's, Arvindji's, Kiranji's and Manish's absence. All the decision-making power was then in the hands of the core committee.

Q: India Against Corruption volunteers are collecting donations from the people who have gathered here. How much money do you think you will collect in the next few days?

A: The collection is on in full swing now. In the next few days, I think we should be able to collect at least Rs 1 crore from all over the country.

Q: The IAC's website lists out the expenses and collection statement only till April 13, 2011. By when do you think will you be able to give the public the full picture of your expense and collection statement?

A: I think within a week of the successful completion of this movement against corruption we should be able to update our website with (information about) all the money collected and how and where we spent it during the agitation.

The mighty Sikkimese sniper calls it a day

“Bhaichung is God’s gift to Indian football.”

It doesn’t matter whether Bhaichung Bhutia is a media creation or not. He will, however, remain the face of Indian football for a long time to come.

The poster-boy of Indian football brought the curtain down on his decorated career after being bothered by a recurring calf-muscle injury for the last nine months.

Being the only player to score a century of appearances in national colours (43 goals from 109 matches), Bhutia is at peace with himself. “I gave my all on the field and enjoyed every moment of it. I would like to be remembered just as a footballer,” said the Sikkim striker, who went on to become the youngest Indian goal-scorer in 1995.

The Arjuna and Padma Shri awardee played a vital role in placing India on the world map. In another of India’s firsts, Bhutia signed a three-year deal with Bury FC in 1999 to become the first player to ply his trade in professional football.

Bhutia’s erstwhile striking partner and another rare breed belonging to great Indian strikers — IM Vijayan — had once famously said: “Baichung is God’s gift to Indian football.” The previous national coach Bob Houghton went as far as comparing the footballer to ‘God of cricket’ Sachin Tendulkar. Such was Bhutia’s impact on the beautiful game.

The former Indian captain’s glittering 16-year career, however, was not short of controversies. Once, he refused to carry the Olympic torch for the 2008 Beijing Games in support of the Tibetan movement. On another occasion, he preferred a TV reality show ahead of an I-League club for Mohun Bagan.

In addition, he had not always seen eye to eye with the AIFF. But former Indian coach Syed Nayeemuddin’s caustic remark on the Indian talisman being a traitor was reckless to say the least.

Bhutia’s partners in his heyday have hailed the contributions of the ‘little mighty Sikkimese Sniper’. (Deccan Chronicle)

SIKKIM OBSERVER AUG 27, 2011

In the name of Anna, ‘Black Bill’ Golay confronts Chamling

“Black Bill is unconstitutional and undemocratic”

Gangtok, Aug 26: The newly-formed non-political organization Nagarik Adhikar Suraksha Sangathan (NASS), which reportedly has the backing of dissident ruling Sikkim Democratic Front (SDF) legislator PS Tamang, created a flutter in political circles here when it held a massive rally on Wednesday in support of social activist Anna Hazare’s anti-corruption campaign.

Thousands of supporters of the NASS-initiated anti-corruption and anti-Black Bill rally stormed the capital and created quite a stir. “Finally, Golay has arrived,” said an onlooker, who felt relieved that the rally was an open confrontation between the Opposition and the ruling party, which has been ruling the State for 17 years without interruption.

Golay himself was in a buoyant mood. He had urged everyone to pitch in to oppose the “Black Bill” and rampant corruption in the State administration. Those who were fed up with the Chamling Government responded enthusiastically to his call.

Golay stated that he opposes the “Black Bill” and the undemocratic ways of the SDF party. “Because I belong to the SDF does not mean that I will start calling black as white. Black will always remain black. The Black Bill intends to rob the Sikkim citizens of their Fundamental Rights hence it is unconstitutional,” he said.

“Prem Singh Golay, the rebel SDF MLA of Upper Burtuk chose a non-political rally to lash out against his party and political mentor Chamling,” reported a national daily.

Referring to Chamling’s quest for “democracy” with a candle in the Assembly before he formed the government in 1994, Golay said, “That has become history. Chamling himself is leaving no stones unturned to erase that part of history. Where is democracy in Sikkim?”, a national daily reported.

Apart from Opposition leaders others, including social organisations such as the National Sikkimese Bhutia Organisation (NASBO) and All Sikkim Contractors’ Welfare Association (ASCWA), supported NASS’s initiative and joined the rally.

 “Where is democracy now? By introducing the Black Bill Chamling has proved that he is not a democrat,” Golay said.

The Samiti’s President T N Dhakal said the rally is also being organised to protest against the introduction of the Sikkim Prevention and Control of Disturbance of Public Order Bill, 2011, which the Opposition has dubbed it as “Black Bill” aimed at suppression of the citizens fundamental democratic rights.

The Bill was introduced in the Assembly by Chief Minister Pawan Chamling on August 11. However, faced with a massive opposition to the Bill by Opposition parties, including the Congress and BJP, the Bill was abruptly withdrawn on August 16 reportedly with Governor BP Singh’s intervention.

The proposed bill said “Holding of procession, hunger strike or squatting or shouting of slogans or waving black flags or other such agitation methods, tendency or potentiality of promoting enmity or hatred or disaffection between groups or sections or communities on grounds of religion, race or caste shall be deemed to be disturbance of public order” and is punishable by imprisonment of five years and a fine of Rs. 50,000/-.

But despite the withdrawal Opposition parties have decided to carry on with their anti-Black Bill campaign till the Bill is formally withdrawn in the Assembly when it resumes on August 26.

Dhakal, a special secretary who retired from government service last year, had said the Bill cannot be withdrawn without proper discussion in the House. He said the Chief Minister’s reasons for withdrawal of the Bill must be recorded in the Assembly proceedings.

The rallyists not only torched copies of the “Black Bill” but also demanded an apology from Chamling.

Sangathan slams NASS, wants Bill to be passed in Assembly

By A Staff Reporter

Gangtok, Aug 26: The Sikkim Sachet Swarojgar Berojgar Sangathan has supported the Sikkim Prevention and Control of Public Order Bill, which is likely to be withdrawn in the Assembly today.

While addressing a press conference here yesterday, Sangathan General Secretary Dev Gurung said the Bill was neither “unconstitutional” nor “undemocratic.” He said the public order Bill tabled in the Assembly by Chief Minister Pawan Chamling was the need of the hour. The association wants the government to pass the Bill in the interest of the people.

The Sangathan has accused the rally organized in the capital on Wednesday by Nagarik Adhikar Suraksha Sangathan Samiti (NASS) as “politically-motivated.”

Sangathan President Karma Gurmey Bhutia alleged that during the NASS-organised protest rally in support of Anna Hazare’s anti-corruption campaign the participants shouted slogans such as “PS Golay Zindabad.”

P S Tamang (Golay), a dissident ruling party legislator is believed to be backing the NASS, whose first public event was Wednesday’s rally.

“NGOs must be above politics and political parties but NASS is trying to gain political mileage by terming the bill as “Black Bill,” Bhutia said.

The Sangathan also slammed Sikkim Himali Rajya Parishad Party (SHRPP) President A D Subba for encouraging “anti-social elements” in the State. It said Subba offered khadas to those who torched Chamling’s effigy in Gangtok and West Sikkim recently.

Sakya Trizin to pay month-long visit to Sikkim in October

By A Staff Reporter

Gangtok, Aug 26: His Holiness the Sakya Trizin, head of Sakya order of Tibetan Buddhism, will be visiting the State in October for the 50^th anniversary celebrations of Ngor Gompa (monastery).

The Sakya Trizin will be accompanied by Luding Khen Rinpoche, head of the Ngor lineage of the Sakya sect, according to Kunga Y. Hochotsang, Director of Sa-Ngor Chotshog Centre (Ngor Gompa), located near the capital at Rongnek.

His Holiness will give initiations and teachings during his month-long stay in the former Buddhist kingdom.

During his stay, His Holiness will visit the Tibetan settlement in Rabongla, south Sikkim and Karma Kagyu monastery of Gyaltsab Rinpoche in Ralong, also in south Sikkim.

Sikkimese sniper Baichung Bhutia retires from international football

Observer News Service

Kolkata, Aug 26: India's former football captain Baichung Bhutia has announced his retirement from the international game.

The 34-year-old star striker has been struggling with injuries. Bhutia was the first player from the sub-continent to sign a professional contract with a European football club when he signed for Bury in 1999, the BBC reported.

He is also the only Indian footballer to play more than 100 matches for his country during his distinguished 16-year career.

"I had a fantastic 16 years of international football. I enjoyed every moment to have represented the country, to have contributed to the game," Bhutia told reporters on Wednesday.

"I wanted to continue playing but the last seven-eight months have been frustrating due to a lot of injuries. So I have decided to quit," he added.

The footballer said he would continue to play for his club, United Sikkim FC, which he founded.

"Lot of things in life do not happen the way we wish so I am quitting from international football but will continue playing for my club," he said.

Bhutia scored 43 goals in international football, the highest by an Indian footballer. He played for Bury FC in England for three years until 2002.

India won a premier South Asian championship three times under his captaincy.

Bhutia, a Buddhist, comes from the north-eastern Indian state of Sikkim.

''Kina Maya Ma'' nominated for awards in Nepal

Gangtok, Aug 26:  Nepalese film 'Kina Maya Ma', shot entirely in Sikkim and starring 'Indian Idol III' winner Prashant Tamang, has been nominated in two award categories in Nepal.

Produced by prominent Nepalese film producers Channel Ace, the movie is directed by Chunilal Ghimeray and has been nominated for at the CG Digital Film Awards of Kathmandu, UNI reported.

The film has been nominated in best story (Chunilal Ghimeray) and best choreography (Govind Rai) categories of the awards festival, the production house sources said. The CG Digital Film Awards, a premier film event in Nepal, will take place on September 8, 2011.

The Sikkim premiere of the movie is scheduled on August 27 in Gangtok. Shot entirely in Sikkim, the film has Kathmandu-based model-turned-actress Sumina Ghimire opposite Tamang. It also features several actors from Sikkim and Darjeeling, familiar faces in local productions.

SHRPP protesters march across heart of city, takes everyone by surprise

Gangtok, August 26: It was a protest rally of a different kind. A 10-member team of Sikkim Himali Rajya Parishad Party (SHRPP) with heads clean shaven and placards hanging on their neck marched across the heart of the city – from Nam Nang to Titanic Park through M G Marg – protesting against imposition of the “Black Bill” that Chief Minister Pawan Chamling introduced in the Sikkim Legislative Assembly on August 11.

The peaceful protest rally, while taking the authorities by surprise, was most effective and yet simple and cost-free.

SHRPP President AD Subba threatened to give a call for ‘Jail Bhoro’ if the Bill was not withdrawn when the Assembly resumes on Friday after a brief recess.

The ten who staged the peaceful protest were Gyalpo Tamang, MB Rai, LM Limboo, Om Prakash Bista, DB Mangar, SP Sharma, RL Ghimirey, KB Dahal, Jacob Tamang and SB Subba.

Editorial

REGIME CHANGE

Building Democratic Institutions Vital

Unity, planning and sustained non-violent people’s movement are key factors that often lead to overthrow of dictators. Aware of these vital factors for regime change veterans of the uprising in Serbia, which overthrew President Slobodan Milosevic in 2000, are running workshops for opposition groups around the world on how to bring down  dictators. Their Centre for Applied Nonviolent Action and Strategies (CANVAS) teaches the science of regime change anywhere in the world. Srja Popovic, who runs a School of Revolution for Canvas, was a student leader and played a key role in the 2000 Serbian revolt that ousted Milosevic. The tactics Popovic learnt during Milosevic’s ouster are now being taught to opposition, student and youth leaders and with much success. Canvas held workshops with Egyptian opposition groups in 2009, including the April 6 movement that played a key role in the overthrow of the Mubarak regime two years later. Emphasising the importance of “unity” in mass movements, Popovic says, “They (Egyptians) gave up their individual symbols of their own groups and came out only with the flag of Egypt.”

Since the uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt, traffic to the Canvas website has soared - with tens of thousands of downloads of the organization’s free guide on staging protest. But Popovic and leaders of mass movements agree that bringing down a dictator is not enough. Change of one personality is not a revolution. Sometimes changing one person cannot bring the desired changes in the system of governance. “Removing the bad guy is sometimes easier than building the democratic institutions,” says Popovic. Building an open, just and free society is a time-consuming process where everyone, including the man in the street, needs to be involved. Widespread and prolonged protests often lead to toppling of dictators but without strong and credible democratic institutions nothing concrete and long-lasting can be achieved. Supporters of social activist Anna Hazare have created a greater awareness of the curse of corruption throughout the sub-continent. This in itself is a spectacular achievement. Placing the right representatives in the Parliament and State Assembly – the next big task – are vital factors in changing the system of governance. Laws and rules are important; but it is individuals who shape society and change the destiny of nations.

Politics of Population in the Himalayas

SUNANDA K DATTA-RAY

The possibility of new Nepalese-majority States doesn’t concern West Bengal alone. It concerns India from Assam to Uttarakhand.

Bounded by Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and China, Gorkhaland will be India’s second Nepalese-majority State. If migration across the 500-mile open border — which the 1950 India-Nepal Treaty permits and even encourages — continues, it may not be the last. The prospect explains Rajiv Gandhi’s refusal in 1986 to countenance citizenship for post-1950 immigrants.

Even Darjeeling’s sitting MP tempers pleasure over the recent tripartite agreement with circumspection. “The challenge is to understand: ‘what hereafter’ and to address that,” Mr Jaswant Singh warns. Since Ms Mamata Banerjee denies that the tripartite agreement will lead to Statehood, she may not realise there is a challenge to understand and address.

It may soon become mandatory to speak only of ‘Gorkha’, so let me be ethnically accurate rather than politically correct while it is still possible and say that the challenge is of appreciating Nepalese history and ethnography and its impact on India all along the Himalayas, not just in West Bengal. Some Nepalese readers have taken umbrage at my article “Step towards Gorkhaland” published in these columns on July 29. They probably feel the economic implications of migration are demeaning. Hence they insist they didn’t come from anywhere but have always been Indian.

Always is a big word and a huge concept. How long does one have to live in a terrain to be regarded as indigenous, a reader asked. The answer can’t be measured in years or even generations. The Burdwan zamindari family have lived in Bengal for 500 years and don’t speak a word of Punjabi. But apart from exceptional love matches, all their spouses come from Punjab. In the US, Ralph Ellison, the Black American author of Invisible Man, nursed no memory, individual or folk, of his African forebears. His consciousness had been shaped in the crucible of the American Dream.

As the Rastafarian movement or the Black American girl flirting with Nigerian attire in A Raisin in the Sun demonstrated, belonging is a state of mind. I have seen German-origin Soviet families squatting for days on airport floors with their boxes and bedding like refugees at Sealdah station waiting for flights to “return” to a Germany some had never seen. I also know ethnic Germans who despite Germanic names and appearance, regard themselves and are regarded by others as entirely Russian.

With passports of convenience readily available, legal citizenship is only a small part of identity. Nor is identity constricted by boundaries which is why many Nagas seek union with their fellow tribesmen in Myanmar. Friends of Dorjee Khandu, the late Chief Minister of Arunachal Pradesh, say he was loyally Indian to the core but completely Tibetan in lifestyle. A Malaysian bumiputera (son of the soil) is born Malay and Muslim, but Malayali settlers in dhoti and angavastram are also accorded bumiputera status. The Burdwans suggest that choice takes precedence over history and ethnicity.

Readers who deny that the British brought in Nepalese labour are right only to the extent that migration existed before Sikkim ceded Darjeeling to the East India Company. But it’s fanciful to claim (as one reader did) that the Nepalese came in the 1600s. Many of Darjeeling’s 1,900 inhabitants in 1850 (2,200 in 1869) were the original Lepchas and Bhutiyas.

Leo Rose, Lopita Nath and other scholars regard the Treaty of Sugauli and establishment of recruitment centres at Ghoom and Gorakhpur as the start. The 1950 Treaty additionally encouraged immigration. The Nepalese share of Darjeeling’s population rose from 54 per cent in 1901 to 58.4 per cent in 1971. Reportedly, it increased by 700 per cent during 1951-2001.

A vigorous community’s eastward push reduced Lepchas and Bhutiyas to minorities in their own homeland. Ethnic strife erupted throughout the North-East but especially in Meghalaya. Darjeeling suffered grievously. The most dramatic impact was in Sikkim which had only 2,500 Lepchas, 1,500 Bhutiyas and 1,000 Tsongs in 1873. A century later, the Nepalese, then three-quarters of the population, played a decisive part in changing the status of a Tibetan-Buddhist kingdom with which they could not relate. A Sikkim-Nepalese politician even demanded a Nepalese Hindu king to balance the Bhutiya Buddhist Chogyal! Bhutan began to be wary of non-Drukpa settlers after the Sikkim agitation in which many Darjeeling Nepalese participated. There were also allegations of Darjeeling Nepalese agitators in Bhutan.

Bhutan began recruiting Nepalese labourers (tangyas) in 1900, allowing them to stay on as tenant farmers with Bhutanese nationality. This changed when Bhutan’s planned growth, empty land and porous borders attracted waves of illegal migrants. The evictions, refugee camps in Nepal, militant organisations, terrorist activity and assisted migration to North America and Europe are another story.

Just as Drukpa officials felt absorption would be easier if the Nepalese were called Southern Bhutanese or Lhotshampas, Subhas Ghising dubbed them Gorkha. Prem Poddar claims in Gorkhas Imagined that “the word ‘Gorkha’ (or the neologism ‘Gorkhaness’) as a self-descriptive term ... has gained currency as a marker of difference for Nepalis living in India … While this counters the irredentism of a Greater Nepal thesis, it cannot completely exorcise the spectres or temptations of an ethnic absolutism for diasporic subjects.” Ghising’s overtures to Nepal’s King Birendra and Prince Gyanendra and periodic unpublicised trips to Nepal may have aggravated those fears. It was recalled then that the All-India Gurkha League’s founding constitution referred to Nepal as the “motherland”.

Several readers argue that Bengalis are equally foreign because they are really Bangladeshis. True, many people in Calcutta and West Bengal have roots in East Bengal (there was no Bangladesh then) just as many Tamils in Chennai come from villages in Tanjore and other districts. The metropole always attracts manpower, and internal migration in undivided Bengal followed this pattern. The movement since 1947 falls into two categories. The first is a staggered and delayed (because of political factors including the 1950 Nehru-Liaquat Ali Pact) counterpart of the exchange of population that happened all at once in Punjab. The second is the illegal influx of Muslims from East Pakistan and later Bangladesh, often abetted by elements in West Bengal. Undeniably, they should be tracked down and deported but neither group can be compared to the millions of Nepalese who have over the decades migrated to and made India their home.

The possibility of new Nepalese-majority States doesn’t concern West Bengal alone. It concerns India from Assam to Uttarakhand. The situation is without global parallel. (The Pioneer)

Revolt in Sikkim over suppression of democratic rights

JIGME N KAZI

The Opposition says the “Black Bill” is a “conspiracy” of the ‘Sikkim Autocratic Front’ government’s bid to suppress any form of opposition and dissent in Sikkim.

The Chamling Government’s bid to effectively curb dissent in the former Himalayan kingdom that reluctantly embraced ‘democracy’ three and half decades back has backfired.

The man who seventeen years ago protested against former chief minister Nar Bahadur Bhandari’s corrupt and dictatorial rule has tabled The Sikkim Prevention and Control of Disturbance of Public Order Bill in the Sikkim Legislative Assembly. The Bill seeks to curb basic fundamental democratic rights of the people enshrined in the Constitution.

“We got democracy in exchange of our sovereignty,” said Chief Minister Pawan Chamling when he led the movement for restoration of democracy in the State in 1993-94. The pro-democracy and anti-Bhandari movement led to Bhandari’s defeat in the November 1994 Assembly polls that saw Chamling form his Sikkim Democratic Front government in December 1994. The tide has turned full circle now. Chamling has now been accused of corruption and dictatorial tendencies, two major issues he used to unseat Bhandari.

The Congress party-initiated CBI case against Chamling and his present and former ministers is presently with the Supreme Court. Pressure for CBI probe against Chamling’s disproportionate assets case is mounting by the day and the four-term chief minister is placed in a tight situation.

Reacting to what the Opposition termed as the “Black Bill”, Acting President of Sikkim Pradesh Congress Committee Kunga Nima Lepcha said the “draconian” Bill was a “conspiracy” of the ‘Sikkim Autocratic Front’ government’s bid to suppress any form of opposition and dissent in the State against the “misdeeds and anti-people activities” of the Chamling Government.

In a rare show of unity Opposition leaders boycotted the Governor’s tea party on Independence day.  The decision to boycott the official function of the Raj Bhavan was taken during a hurriedly-held meeting of the Opposition a day after the Bill was tabled in the House by Chamling, also the Home Minister.

Sikkim National People’s Party President Biraj Adhikari said opposition parties have decided to hold protest rallies in the State to oppose the “dictatorial” proposal of the ruling party.

Sikkim Himali Rajya Parishad Party (SHRPP) led by its President AD Subba, who took part in the meeting, said party workers burnt Chamling’s effigy in west Sikkim in protest against the Bill.

SHRPP members again torched Chamling’s effigy in Gangtok on the eve of the I-Day celebrations. According to SHRPP General Secretary Tara Shrestha, police arrested 8 party workers in connection with the incident.

“The Black Bill is unacceptable in a democracy. It is aimed at throttling the voice of the people,” said CPIM leader Anjan Upadhyaya said

Sikkim BJP President Padam Bahadur Chettri while condemning the Bill as “undemocratic” appealed to dissident SDF leader and MLA PS Tamang to raise the issue in the Assembly  when it comes up for discussion on August 26. But as all the 32 MLAs in the Assembly belong to the ruling party there is not much that Tamang can do to stop the smooth passage of the Bill.

The Sikkim Liberation Party (SLP) Convenor, Duk Nath Nepal, said by introducing the Bill in the Assembly the Chamling Government has proved that it has lost “faith” in the “Indian Constitution” and the “system of constitutional democracy.”

Leaders of the Sikkim Bhutia-Lepcha Apex Committee (SIBLAC) and All Sikkim Educated Self-Employed & Unemployed Association were also present during the all-party meeting. The Opposition is no mood to submit itself to the new law. “We will hold rallies, carry threatened Adhikari.

The Bill seeks to curtail freedom of expression and movement in the State by imposing heavy penalties. Anyone who engages in rallies, processions, hunger strikes, shouting slogans, waving black flags and thereby disturbing public  peace and order will be fined Rs 50,000 and sent to jail for five years.

Those who take part in extortions, drug abuse, employ children for household work, and children under 18 years caught smoking, visiting bars and discotheques would also face severe punishment under the Bill.

Recently, four members of the SDF’s Central Executive Committee (CEC) quit the party in protest against Chamling’s “undemocratic and autocratic” style of functioning. “Presently, no ones voice is heard apart from yours in the party,” their resignation letter to Chamling, who is also the party president, said. It added, “Those who give good suggestions are labeled as anti-party.”  The four – Kiran Chettri, Sonam Bhutia, Nima Theeng and Sonam Sherpa -  are likely to join Tamang, whom many see as the chief-minister-in-waiting.

The Sikkim High Court’s recent ruling placing Bhandari in jail for misuse of power in 1983-84 during his first term in office that led to a loss of Rs 2,14,120 to the State exchequer has become another major catalyst for Opposition unity in the State.

While Bhandari has threatened to quit the Congress party to form his own regional party when the one-month jail sentence expires early next month, Congress leaders believe that the party chief will come out stronger when he returns to active politics next month.

“We are not anti-India but pro-Sikkim,” Bhandari confided to me after he was hospitalized here in a local hospital and kept in the ICU of the cardiology ward.

Adhikari has urged all Opposition parties and social organisations and others to seek Bhandari’s immediate release.

Former MLA and one of the chief architects of Sikkim’s merger, Nar Bahadur Khatiwada, alleged that the former chief minister was not being properly looked after in the hospital and said the Chamling Government would be held responsible should anything happen to Bhandari.

Khatiwada, who is presently with the Sikkim Gorkha Prajatantrik Party (SGPP), while supporting opposition to the Bill, said, “The Black Bill is the most unfortunate move of the SDF government. This is a Bill to suppress the freedom of expression of the people.”

Under what law did you advise govt to withdraw ‘Black Bill’, BJP asks

Gangtok, Aug 26: The State unit of the BJP has questioned the legality of Governor BP Singh’s controversial decision to advise the State Government to withdraw a Bill tabled in the Assembly by Chief Minister Pawan Chamling.

The State Government was forced to withdraw the Sikkim Prevention and Control of Disturbance of Public Order Bill No 10 of 2011 amidst mounting opposition from Opposition parties and the civil society, which termed the proposed legislation as the “Black Bill” aimed at curtailing freedom of expression and movement in the State.

Reacting to the government’s decision to withdraw the Bill, BJP Sikkim unit President Padam Chettri in a press statement said, “I would  like to ask the Governor under what law or under which Article of the constitution he “advised the State government to withdraw the Bill”.

Chettri pointed out that the Speaker KT Gyaltsen had

“granted leave to introduce the Bill and directed that Discussion and Voting on the Bill would be taken up on 26 August, 2011.”

Alleging that “The Bill is against the fundamental rights enshrined in the Constitution; and fundamental rights are covered under the “basic structure” of the Constitution which none can violate,” Chettri said the Governor “can withhold his assent to the Bill when it is sent to him” but he cannot direct the government to withdraw a Bill when it has been introduced in the House.

“The Bill is the property of the Sikkim Legislative Assembly Secretariat. Having fixed the date of 26 August 2011 for discussion and voting, the Bill can be withdrawn only under Clause 104 of the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of business in Sikkim Legislative Assembly, “ Chettri said while adding  “But already on 17 August, 2011, the Executive government issued a statement that the Bill is withdrawn. It is sad that the Speaker and legislature has become a puppet in the hands” of the Chief Minister.

India prepares for Chinese threat in Himalayan frontier

Major build-up of military infrastructure by China all along the border.

New Delhi, Aug 26: With Beijing flexing its muscles by strengthening its military capacity in Tibet, New Delhi has given an in-principle nod to beef up defences along the 4,057-km Line of Actual Control. The Indian counter-move includes raising a new army corps at Pannagarh in West Bengal, an armoured brigade each in eastern Sikkim and eastern Ladakh and an independent infantry brigade in the Barahoti plains in Uttarakhand, a national daily reported.

While the proposed upgradation of Indian military defences is being processed for final approval by the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS), it was given an in-principle green signal from Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and defence minister AK Antony during an army presentation last month.

The strategic step was taken in the light of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) capability to deploy no less than 34 divisions (nearly half-a-million troops) within a month on the LAC due to a huge infrastructure build-up in Tibet. To add to India's discomfort, the PLA has been conducting airborne, para-dropping and artillery firing exercises in Tibet for the past two years.

Government sources said the Pannagarh-based corps (around 15,000 combat troops) will include a Ranchi-based formation, which is currently part of the Mathura-based 1 Corps. This means that the army will raise two more divisions in the coming years to replenish the Mathura Corps and another to add to the Pannagarh formation. For this purpose, the army has earmarked 6,000 acres of land in Pannagarh, which has a functioning air force strip and is located 150 km from Kolkata.

Already a battalion and a tank regiment, which will be part of the armoured brigade, have been moved to Sikkim.

At the heart of the proposed Indian defence build-up is the threat assessment that the PLA may become assertive across the Arunachal Pradesh border in the coming years as Beijing still calls its South Tibet and has not given up its stapled visa strategy for residents of Arunachal Pradesh and Jammu Kashmir.

The Army is planning to set up a mountain strike corps and is talking to various states including in the northeast against the backdrop of a Chinese build up of military infrastructure on its side of boundary.

"We are in talks with the governments of states including Assam, West Bengal and Bihar for setting up the mountain corps headquarters, which would require at least 4,000 to 5,000 acres of land," senior Army sources said here.

Around 10-12 locations in these states have been identified by the Army to set up the formation, they said.

The mountain strike corps is being planned by the Army after it established two new mountain infantry divisions for the northeastern region.

The Army is also looking to deploy ultra-light howitzers and light tanks along the Line of Actual Control in Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh.

All these developments come against the backdrop of a major build-up of military infrastructure by China all along the border, which includes five fully-operational airbases, an extensive rail network and over 58,000-km of roads in Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR).

Rumtek trust celebrates golden jubilee

 By A Staff Reporter

Gangtok, Aug 26: The Karmapa Charitable Trust (KCT) observed its Golden Jubilee Anniversary here and at Rumtek. The KCT was initially founded by the Late His Holiness the 16th Gyalwang Karmapa Ranjgung Rigpe Dorje in 1961 to undertake varied dharma activities across the World from His Holiness’ seat-in-exile at Rumtek, East Sikkim.

However, keeping in view of the recent passing away of its last surviving parent Trustee Ashok Chand Burman, the scale of observation was scale down to a very simple and formal, an official release said.

The KCT Trustee Trateng Yarpa JT Gyaltsen graced the celebration at Gangtok as its Chief Guest. The observation was joined amongst others by the monk community, local gentries and followers of HH the Gyalwang Karmapa.

Earlier a commemorative tree plantation was organized by Yarpa Gyaltsen in and around Rumtek.

PRIDE OF SIKKIM

Outstanding student from Pelling first recipient of CM’s  scholarship scheme

Karma Sonam Bhutia admitted to University of California

Observer News Service

Geyzing, Aug 26: Karma Sonam Bhutia, a resident of Pelling in west Sikkim, is the first recipient of the Chief Minister Pawan Chamling’s Free Scholarship Scheme.

The scheme, announced by the Chief Minister during the recent Independence Day celebrations, is meant for students who succeed in getting admission through competitive entrance exam to the world’s 20 top Universities for higher studies in any discipline.

Karma was admitted to the University of California, Los Angeles, US, to undergo further studies in Masters in Science, according to IPR.

According to the HRDD, the University of California is among the top 20 universities in the world. Karma is the first recipient of this scholarship from the State.

Karma has been excelling in academics as well as other fields right from his school days. He received regional award for topper in the region in ICSE 2003 in Kalimpong with an aggregate of 92%.

He was the school topper in ISC with 93%. He has also received Bhanu Puraskar in Bhanu Jayanti on securing highest marks in Nepali in ICSE 2003 and was a top ranking student in the institute in the 1st to 5th semester in NIT Calicut.

Karma was also a Gold Medalist in ECE department in NIT Calicut and was also a recipient of Cromptom Greaves Limited Sponsorship for academic excellence in B.Tech (Electronics scores) among 20 NITs of the country.

After graduating with Gold Medal in B.Tech from NIT Calicut Karma was working as Design Engineer in Analog Devices India Pvt. Ltd., which is involved in designing computer chips. The course he has now opted is M.S.(Masters in Science) in Electronic Circuits and Systems in Electronic Engineering, which is equivalent to M.Tech. This will enable him to specialize in the field of designing computer chips which are extensively used in application specific fields, such as automobile control systems, avionics, audio systems, bio medical applications etc.

Gangtokians hold rally in support of Team Anna

By A Staff Reporter

Gangtok, Aug 26: The newly-formed People Volunteer Cell (PVC) organized a rally here on Tuesday in support of Anna Hazare’s call for a strong Lokpal Bill to curb corruption in the country.

Nearly 200 citizens participated in the rally, which began at Deorali and ended here at Zero Point.

PVC Convenor Majoj Gazmer said ordinary people are suffering due to rampant corruption in high places.

Briefing the media, Gazmer said the State Government should allow the CBI to probe into graft cases in the State.

He said members of Team Anna had come to Sikkim last month and their visit led to formation of the PVC.

PVC members also met Y.T Lepcha, who began his hunger strike here since August 20 in support of Anna’s anti-corruption campaign.

Several prominent Opposition leaders in the State, including Biraj Adhikari, D N Nepal and Tika Chettri also met Lepcha and gave their moral support.

T N Dhakal, President of the newly-formed Nagarik Adhikar Suraksha Sagathan Sikkim (NASSS) along with his colleagues, Sonam Bhutia, NK Gurung and Cheen Kazi, also met Lepcha at Paljor Stadium premises to extend their support.

Dhakal challenged the Chamling Government to extend its support to Team Anna if it is clean and want a corruption-free administration.

SIKKIM OBSERVER   Aug 20, 2011

Dhakal to lead anti-corruption, ‘Black Bill’ campaign

Golay’s men in Nagarik Adhikar Suraksha Sangathan

By A Staff Reporter

Gangtok, Aug 19: As expected former civil servant T N Dhakal, who retired from government service last year as special secretary, has formed his own non-political outfit

– Nagarik Adhikar Suraksha Sangathan (NASS).

The new body reportedly was formed in Melli, south Sikkim, at a meeting where Dhakal was elected the President of the new body. It came out in the open here yesterday at a press conference addressed by Dhakal and others.

The ruling Sikkim Democratic Front’s dissident leaders, Nima Theeng, Sonam Bhutia and Kiran Chettri, who recently quit the party and are believed to be close to dissident SDF legislator PS Tamang (Golay), are in the executive committee of the party. The chief coordinator of the Samiti is MN Dahal, brother of former Lok Sabha MP and SDF spokesperson, who recently retired from government service.

One of the main objectives of the Samiti at present is to oppose the recently-introduced Sikkim Prevention and Control of Disturbance of Public Order Bill, 2011, which has reportedly been withdrawn following massive protest by the Opposition, Dhakal said during the press conference.

Dhakal said the new body will also highlight rampant corruption in the State, will support Anna Hazare’s campaign against corruption and create general awareness of civil rights of the people.

The executive body of the Samiti is as follows: TN Dhakal (President), MN Dahal (Chief Coordinator), Sonam Bhutia (Coordinator), Nima Theeng, Birendra Subba, Tenzing Gyatso Bhutia and Hari Das Rai (Vice-President), Milan Rai (General Secretary), Kala Rai and Tshering Dorjee Bhutia (Joint-Secretary), Kiran Chettri (Publicity Secretary) and  Chinkazi Shrestha (Treasurer).

 The Samiti also has four convenors and eight vice-convenors: Deepen Hang Subba, Krishna Gurung, Bishnu Sharma and Palden Bhutia (Convenor) and RB Subba, Chewang Norbu Lepcha, Santosh Pradhan, Pawan Gurung, Yapchung Bhutia, Phurten Lepcha, Gopal Gurung and Ashok Pradhan (Vice-Convenor).

Many of the members of the Samiti’s executive committee, who quit the ruling party earlier, are with Golay. Dhakal, who has strong views on various issues relating to ‘Sikkim Subjects’, may be keeping the seat warm for Golay.

Gorkha League supports Sikkim-Darjeeling merger demand

By A Correspondent

Darjeeling, Aug 19: The All India Gorkha League (AIGL) has supported the Sikkim-Darjeeling merger demand raised by Sikkim-Darjeeling United Front (SDUF).

AIGL President Bharati Tamang said her party would soon convene a meeting on the issue of Darjeeling’s merger with Sikkim. She said her party first preferred a separate state of Gorkhaland and if this is not possible the next option would be to merge Darjeeling with Sikkim, where the Nepalese are in the majority.

The Front had urged the AIGL to support its demand during a press conference held in Siliguri on Sunday.

CPRM leader RB Rai was not opposed to the merger demand.  He said the initiative on the issue should come from the people of Sikkim.

The merger demand was one of the main issues raised by the Gorkha Rashtriya Congress (GRC), a unit of the SDUF, whose President, late D K Bomzan campaigned on the issue in Sikkim before he passed away in October 2010.

It was mainly due to the ongoing agitation in Darjeeling for the statehood demand and also because of the negative response on the merger issue from Sikkim and also because of the untimely death of the GRC leader that the issue was shelved temporarily.

CM wishes Bhandari speedy recovery

By A Staff Reporter

Gangtok, Aug 19: Chief Minister Pawan Chamling has wished speedy recovery for the former chief minister N B Bhandari who was referred to a hospital outside the State yesterday.

The Chief Minister met Bhandari before his departure for Delhi here at the STNM where he was being treated for heart ailments since August 10.

Besides inquiring about his health and wishing him speedy recovery, Chamling also asked the doctors to provide “best medial facilities and care” for the ailing Congress chief, according to an official release.

Bhandari has been referred to Medanta Medi City, Gurgoan, Haryana, by a panel of doctors of STNM Hospital for his further treatment.

Opp to go ahead with ‘Black Bill’ protest

Observer News Service

Gangtok, Aug 19: Despite the State Government’s decision to withdraw the controversial Sikkim Prevention and Control of Disturbance of Public Order Bill, 2011, labeled as the “Black Bill” by the Opposition, agitation against the Bill will continue.

This was decided during an all-party meeting held here yesterday. “Unless the Bill is withdrawn from the Assembly itself we will agitate against it,” said Biraj Adhikari, President of Sikkim National People’s Party (SNPP).

As per an official press release, the Bill, which was introduced in the Sikkim Legislative Assembly by Chief Minister Pawan Chamling in his capacity as Home Minister on August 11, “has been decided to be withdrawn by the Government.”

“The very wording of the release seems unclear and confusing. Has the government withdrawn the Bill or is it a merely a decision to withdraw the Bill?” questioned a senior opposition leader.

Unconfirmed reports say that the Bill was withdrawn on the advice of the Governor, B P Singh, who met the Chief Minister informally on two occasions on August 15 during the I-Day celebrations.

It may be noted that the proposed withdrawal of the Bill followed three significant developments. Firstly, all Opposition parties, including the Congress and BJP, and some non-political organisations were united in opposition the “Black Bill”, which they said was aimed at suppression of democratic rights of free movement and expression guaranteed under the Constitution. Opposition leaders also decided to hold joint agitation all over the State on the issue.

Secondly, on August 14 on the eve of I-Day celebrations activists of Sikkim Himali Rajya Parishad Party (SHRPP) burnt the effigy of the chief minister in the capital in protest against the Black Bill. This was followed by total boycott of Raj Bhavan I-Day high tea party hosted by the Governor by the Opposition.

CPI(M) leader Anjan Upadhyaya said the Opposition would continue with their agitation against the Bill. “We need to apprise the people of the real intentions of the government in introducing the Bill,” said Upadhyaya. “Till the Assembly resumes on August 26 and until the Bill is formally withdrawn from the House opposition parties will hold meetings all over the State to inform the people of the government’s nefarious intentions to curb the democratic rights of the people,” he added.

Democracy without dissent is totally unacceptable

Jigme N Kazi

Gangtok, Aug 19: Dissent was almost effectively and formally suppressed in the former Himalayan kingdom that reluctantly embraced ‘democracy’ three and half decades back.

The man who seventeen years ago protested against former chief minister Nar Bahadur Bhandari’s corrupt and dictatorial regime last week tabled The Sikkim Prevention and Control of Disturbance of Public Order Bill in the Sikkim Legislative Assembly. The Bill seeks to curb basic fundamental democratic rights of the people enshrined in the Constitution.

“We got democracy in exchange of our sovereignty,” said Chief Minister Pawan Chamling when he led the movement for restoration of democracy in the State in 1993-94. The pro-democracy and anti-Bhandari movement led to Bhandari’s defeat in the November 1994 Assembly polls that saw Chamling form his Sikkim Democratic Front government in December 1994. The tide has turned full circle now. Chamling has now been accused of corruption and dictatorial tendencies, two major issues he used to unseat Bhandari.

The Congress party-initiated CBI case against Chamling and his present and former ministers is presently with the Supreme Court. Pressure for CBI probe against Chamling’s disproportionate assets case is mounting by the day and the four-term chief minister is placed in a tight situation.

Reacting to what the Opposition termed as the “Black Bill”, Acting President of Sikkim Pradesh Congress Committee Kunga Nima Lepcha said the “draconian” Bill was a “conspiracy” of the ‘Sikkim Autocratic Front’ government’s bid to suppress any form of opposition and dissent in the State against the “misdeeds and anti-people activities” of the Chamling Government.

In a rare show of unity Opposition leaders boycotted the Governor’s tea party on Independence day.  The decision to boycott the official function of the Raj Bhavan was taken during a hurriedly-held meeting of the Opposition here a day after the Bill was tabled in the House by Chamling, also the Home Minister.

Sikkim National People’s Party President Biraj Adhikari said opposition parties have decided to hold protest rallies in the State to oppose the “dictatorial” proposal of the ruling party.

Sikkim Himali Rajya Parishad Party (SHRPP) led by its President AD Subba, who took part in the meeting, said party workers burnt Chamling’s effigy in west Sikkim in protest against the Bill.

SHRPP members again torched Chamling’s effigy in Gangtok on the eve of the I-Day celebrations. According to SHRPP General Secretary Tara Shrestha, police arrested 8 party workers in connection with the incident.

“The Black Bill is unacceptable in a democracy. It is aimed at throttling the voice of the people,” said CPIM leader Anjan Upadhyaya said

Sikkim BJP President Padam Bahadur Chettri while condemning the Bill as “undemocratic” appealed to dissident SDF leader and MLA PS Tamang to raise the issue in the Assembly  when it comes up for discussion on August 26. But as all the 32 MLAs in the Assembly belong to the ruling party there is not much that Tamang can do to stop the smooth passage of the Bill.

The Sikkim Liberation Party (SLP) Convenor, Duk Nath Nepal, said by introducing the Bill in the Assembly the Chamling Government has proved that it has lost “faith” in the “Indian Constitution” and the “system of constitutional democracy.”

N B Khatiwada, one of the chief architects of Sikkim’s merger, who is presently with the Sikkim Gorkha Prajatantrik Party (SGPP), while supporting opposition to the Bill, said, “The Black Bill is the most unfortunate move of the SDF government. This is a Bill to suppress the freedom of expression of the people.”

Leaders of the Sikkim Bhutia-Lepcha Apex Committee (SIBLAC) and All Sikkim Educated Self-Employed & Unemployed Association were also present during the all-party meeting.

The Opposition is no mood to submit itself to the new law. “We will hold rallies, carry black flags and shout slogans to oppose the Black Bill,” threatened Adhikari. Opposition leaders have decided to carry on with their anti-Bill agitation even after the Bill was reportedly withdrawn by the government on August 16 on the advice of the Governor.

The Bill seeks to curtail freedom of expression and movement in the State by imposing heavy penalties. Anyone who engages in rallies, processions, hunger strikes, shouting slogans, waving black flags and thereby disturbing public  peace and order will be fined Rs 50,000 and sent to jail for five years.

Those who take part in extortions, drug abuse, employ children for household work, and children under 18 years caught smoking, visiting bars and discotheques would also face severe punishment under the Bill.

Recently, four members of the SDF’s Central Executive Committee (CEC) quit the party in protest against Chamling’s “undemocratic and autocratic” style of functioning. “Presently, no ones voice is heard apart from yours in the party,” their resignation letter to Chamling, who is also the party president, said. It added, “Those who give good suggestions are labeled as anti-party.” 

Hopefully, the Black Bill will be withdrawn when the Assembly resumes on August 26. But the evil intentions behind this piece of legislation cannot be easily erased or pardoned.

Editorial

NATIONAL REFERRENDUM

Parliamentarians Need To Be Taught A Lesson

The manner in which the UPA Government, more particularly its Congress ministers and spokespersons, over the issue of corruption not only reflects the bankruptcy of its political leadership to tackle with such grave issues but further exposes the rot in our parliamentary system. Several highly-placed elected members of the Parliament seem to think that since they have been voted to the House they can do whatever they like in the name of “parliamentary democracy” and “law and order”. In this country the Constitution is supreme and not the Parliament. If our MPs continue to suppress the just and democratic aspirations of the people for a more transparent and accountable system of governance that checks the growing corruption in the administration and in the daily life of the citizens then there ought to be a nationwide referendum against a corrupt and incompetent government at the Centre.

The hollowness and the hypocricy of the UPA leadership in dealing with the Lokpal Bill and Team Anna is evident to all except for those few who feel that, because they have been elected to the Parliament, have the right to illegally and unjustifiably clamp down heavily on those who do not agree with them. When Yoga Guru Ramdev protested and demanded that black money be brought back to the country the authorities started digging into his and his aide’s past with a view to placing them behind bars. Even Anna was not spared and he has been accused of misappropriation of funds. Instead of responding positively to the sane voice of civil society and cracking down on the corrupt the UPA government’s prime motive seems to be to harass and victimize those who are exposing the corrupt. How stupid and immature they can be? Don’t they realize that it is they who are being exposed in the process? Hypocrites have a way of lying in a mild manner and some of those at the top seems to have perfected this art. In India’s second fight for freedom the first agenda should be to replace the present lot of parliamentarians by better and more responsive representatives of the people. We’ve had enough of this farce; it cannot and must not go on and on forever. Its time for the corrupt to make their final exit as soon as possible through the court of the people.

Bhutia-Lepchas wish Sonia, Bhandari speedy recovery

Observer News Service

Gangtok, Aug 19: The minority Bhutia and Lepcha tribals in the State have prayed for speedy recovery of Congress President and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi and former Chief Minister Nar Bahadur Bhandari, who are undergoing medical treatment in the US and Delhi respectively.

While Sonia is recovering from her recent operation in the US, Bhandari, who was under medical treatment here at the STNM hospital for heart ailments, has been taken to Delhi as his health deteriorated after he was hospitalized here on August 10.

In a message, the Sikkim Bhutia-Lepcha Apex Committee (SIBLAC) Convenor Tseten Tashi Bhutia, said the organization “prays for the early recovery” of both and “aspires that Guru Rinpoche and all the guardian deities of Sikkim bestow the most perfect state of sound health.”

PEOPLE WANT TO KNOW People Have A Right To Know

GORKHALAND TERRITORIAL ADMINISTRATION

Memorandum of Agreement

Whereas the Gorkha Janamukti Morcha (GJM) has been demanding for quite sometime

past a separate State of Gorkhaland for the hill areas of Darjeeling district including some areas of Siliguri Terai and Dooars (hereinafter referred to as the Region) ;

And

Whereas both the Government of India and the Government of West Bengal have

repeatedly emphasized the need for keeping the region as an integral part of the State of West Bengal ;

And

Whereas after several rounds of tripartite meetings at the ministerial and at the official

levels, the GJM, while not dropping their demand for a separate State of Gorkhaland, has agreed to the setting up of an autonomous Body (hereinafter referred to as the new Body) empowered with administrative, financial and executive powers in regard to various subjects to be transferred to the said Body for the development of the region and restoration of peace and normalcy there at;

And

Whereas the objective of this Agreement is to establish an autonomous self governing

Body to administer the region so that the socio-economic, infrastructural, educational, cultural, and linguistic, development is expedited and the ethnic identity of Gorkhas established, thereby achieving all round development of the people of the region;

And

Whereas all issues including issues relating to transfer of subjects to the new Body have

been agreed in various tripartite meetings at the official level;

And

Whereas after several round of Tripartite discussions between the Government of India,

the Government of West Bengal and the GJM, an agreement was reached in respect of all the issues;

Now, therefore, the Government of India, the Government of West Bengal and the GJM,

keeping on record the demand of the GJM for a separate State of Gorkhaland, agree as follows:-

1) An autonomous Body, which shall be called the Gorkhaland Territorial

Administration (GTA), will be formed through direct election. A Bill for this purpose

will be introduced in the West Bengal Legislative Assembly ;

2) While under the provisions of the Constitution transfer of legislative powers to the

new Body is not possible, the power to frame rules / regulations under the State Acts

to control, regulate and administer the departments / offices and subjects transferred

to the new Body will be conferred upon the new Body ;

3) The administrative, executive and financial powers in respect of the subjects

transferred will be vested in such a way that the new Body may function in an

autonomous and effective way ;

4) The subjects alongwith all Departments / Offices to be transferred to the new Body is

appended as Annexure – ‘A’.

5) The area of the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration shall comprise the areas of the

entire sub-divisions of Darjeeling, Kalimpong with extended areas of Kurseong. In

regard to transfer of additional areas of Siliguri Terai and Dooars to the new Body, a

High-Powered Committee will be formed comprising four representatives of GJM,

three representatives of the State Government (one from the Home Department; the

District Magistrate, Darjeeling; the District Magistrate, Jalpaiguri); the Director of

Census Operations representing Government of India, apart from the Chairman of the

Committee to be appointed by the State Government. The Chairperson of the Board

of Administrators, DGHC will be the convener of this Committee. The Committee

will look into the question of identification of additional areas in Siliguri Terai and

Dooars that may be transferred to the new Body, having regard to their compactness,

contiguity, homogeneity, ground level situation and other relevant factors.

The Committee will be expected to give its recommendations within a short period, preferably within six months of its constitution.

6) The work of this High-Powered Committee will run parallel to the electoral process

which will be based on the existing area delimitation. However, the empowering

statute will have a provision for transfer of the additional areas from Siliguri Terai

and Dooars that may be agreed upon, based on the recommendation of this

Committee.

7) In regard to transfer of all forests including reserved forest, it was agreed that the State

Government will make a reference to the Central Government on the issue of

reserved forest as the power delegated to the State Government under the Central

statute cannot be delegated to any other authority straightaway. However, all offices

catering to the unreserved forests under the jurisdiction of GTA would also be

transferred to GTA.

8) Regarding Tribal status to Gorkhas except the Scheduled Castes, the GJM or any

organisation representing the Gorkhas will make an application to the Backward

Classes Welfare Department of the State Government, which is the authority to

process such claims. The Department, upon receiving such application supported by

necessary documents will conduct a study through the Cultural Research Institute,

Kolkata. After examination by the Department, the matter will be referred to the

National Commission for Scheduled Tribes. The recommendations already submitted

to the National Commission will be followed up by the State Government. The

Government of India will consider for granting ST status to all the Gorkhas excepting

SC.

9) In regard to regularization of all ad-hoc, casual, daily wage workers of DGHC,

regularization by way of outright absorption is not feasible due to the current legal

position as enunciated by the Hon’ble Supreme Court. However, those employees

who have put in 10 years of continuous service would be guided by the Finance

Department’s order of 23rd April, 2010. Those outside this ambit would be extended

an enhancement in wages. This would be equivalent to 75% of the remuneration

admissible under the order of the Finance Department subject to a minimum of

5,000/- per month for those who have not completed 10 years of continuous service.

As and when they complete 10 years of continuous service, they will be eligible for

the full benefit in terms of the order of 23rd April, 2010. The employees will,

however, have the liberty to apply for normal recruitment to any other posts of State

Government. It was also agreed that the State Government will make necessary

financial provisions for bearing the additional non-plan expenditure for this purpose.

10) There shall be a GTA Sabha for the GTA. There shall be a Chairman and Deputy

Chairman to conduct the business of Council. The GTA Sabha shall consist of fortyfive

elected members and five members to be nominated by the Governor to give

representation to members of SC, ST, women and minority communities. The M.Ps,

M.L.As, and Chairpersons of municipality(s) of the region shall be Ex-officio

Members to this GTA Sabha. The term of the GTA shall be five years.

11) The Executive Body shall consist of a Chief Executive who will nominate fourteen

members out of the elected / nominated members as Executive Member. One of them

shall be the Deputy Chief to be nominated by the Chief Executive.

12) Every member of the GTA shall before taking seat make and subscribe before the

Governor or one of the elected members appointed in that behalf by him an oath or

affirmation. The Chief Executive shall be administered an oath or affirmation by the

Governor.

13) There shall be a Principal Secretary of the GTA, who shall be of the rank of the

Principal Secretary/Secretary to the State Government and who shall be selected by

the Chief Executive from the panel sent by the State Government and shall be paid

from the GTA Fund such salaries and allowances as may be fixed by the State

Government. The Principal Secretary once deputed to the GTA shall not be

transferred for a period of at least two years without the consent of the GTA.

14) The Government of India and the Government of West Bengal will provide all

possible assistance to the GTA for the overall development of the region. The

Government of India will provide financial assistance of Rs. 200 crore (Rupees Two

Hundred Crore) per annum for 3 years for projects to develop the socio-economic

infrastructure in GTA over and above the normal plan assistance to the State of West

Bengal. A list of projects which may be considered to be taken up by the GTA is at

Annexure ‘B1’. List of projects to be separately taken up by the GTA with the

State/Central Government is at ‘B2’.

15) The Government of India/ State Government will provide one time financial

assistance required for development of administrative infrastructure viz., GTA Sabha

House, Secretariat Complex and the residential quarters for the elected members of

GTA and the senior officers.

16) The allocation sanctioned in the budget of GTA and all funds sanctioned by the State

or the Union Government which remain unspent at the close of the financial year

shall be taken into account for the purpose of providing additional resources in the

Budget of the following year or years and the fund requirements will be met on a

yearly basis.

17) The Government of West Bengal shall provide formula based plan fund with 60 per

cent weightage on population and the balance weightage on area backwardness, hill

areas and border areas in two equal installments every year for executing

development works.

18) The Government of West Bengal shall provide Non-plan grant including provisions

for bearing the additional Non-plan expenditure for existing employees payable in

two installments in respect of the offices / departments transferred to GTA.

19) The fund received from the Government of India shall not be diverted and the State

Government shall release the fund in time.

20) The GTA will have the power of creating Group B, C and D posts with the approval

of Governor. The recruitment to Group B, C and D posts will be through a

Subordinate Service Selection Board to be set up for this purpose.

21) The State Public Service Commission shall be consulted for the recruitment of Group

‘A’ officers.

22) The State Government will set-up a separate School Service Commission, College

Service Commission; open an office of the Regional Pension and Provident Fund

Directorate; and set up an office for Registration of land, building etc., marriage,

society etc. in the GTA area, subject to extant rules and regulations.

23) The Governor of West Bengal shall obtain a report on the functioning of the GTA and cause that report to be laid on the table of the West Bengal Legislative Assembly

annually.

24) The Government of West Bengal will initiate action to re-organize / re-constitute the

territorial jurisdictions of sub-divisions and blocks.

25) The GTA, once established, will separately take up the issues relating to grant of

incentives, subsidies, waiver of taxes and tariff and other benefits as appropriate to

the region’s backwardness, with the Central and State Governments.

26) A three-tier Panchayat will be constituted by elections in the GTA region, subject to

the provisions of Part IX of the Constitution of India. Notwithstanding anything

contained in the West Bengal Panchayat Act 1973, or the West Bengal Municipal

Act, 1993, the GTA shall exercise general powers of supervision over the Panchayats

and the Municipalities.

27) Since the formation of new authority will take some time and since the developmental works in the hills, which have already suffered badly, cannot be allowed to suffer further, there will be a Board of Administrators in DGHC which would be fully

empowered to exercise all the powers and functions of the Chief Executive Councilor

under the DGHC Act, 1988 and to decide on the much needed developmental works

in the hills. The Board of Administrators will comprise MLA, Darjeeling; MLA,

Kureong ; MLA, Kalimpong ; District Magistrate, Darjeeling and Administrator,

DGHC in keeping with the provisions of the sub-section (1) of Section 17 of the

DGHC Act as amended vide Kolkata Gazette Notification of 22nd March, 2005.

28) The GJM agrees to ensure that peace and normalcy will be maintained in the region.

29) A review will be done by the State Government of all the cases registered under

various laws against persons involved in the GJM agitation. Steps will be taken in the

light of the review, not to proceed with prosecution in all cases except those charged

with murder. Release of persons in custody will follow the withdrawal of cases.

30) The GTA youth would be considered for recruitment in the Police, Army and Para

Military Forces subject to their suitability for such appointment.

31) The implementation of the provision of the Memorandum of Agreement shall be

periodically reviewed by a committee representing the Government of India,

Government of West Bengal and GJM.

32) The Government of West Bengal shall repeal the DGHC Act, 1988 along with

formation of GTA to be constituted by an Act of the legislature.

Signed on 18th July, 2011 at Darjeeling in the presence of Shri P. Chidambaram, Hon’ble

Union Home Minister and Mamata Banerjee, Hon’ble Chief Minister, West Bengal.

(Dr. G.D. Gautama)                                                                                 (Shri Rooshan Giri )

Additional Chief Secretary,                                                                        General Secretary,

Home & Hill Affairs Department                                                  Gorkha Janmukti Morcha

Government of West Bengal                                                                for and on behalf of the

for and on behalf of the                                                                     Gorkha Janmukti Morcha

Government of West Bengal

(Shri K.K. Pathak)

Joint Secretary to the Government of India

Ministry of Home Affairs

for and on behalf of the

Government of India