LEST WE FORGET

PALDEN THONDUP NAMGYAL

Remembering the Chogyal of Sikkim

Palden Thondup Namgyal, the 12^th Chogyal of Sikkim, died more of a broken heart than cancer 33 years ago on January 30, 1982. Jigme N Kazi, then the Founder-President of Sikkim Students Association (Bombay) and now the Editor of Sikkim Observer, payed glowing tributes to the Chogyal in 1982 in his article in the Association’s annual magazine, Lukshyama,  of which he was the editor.

 This article was earlier republished in the Sikkim Observer and also in Kazi’s book, “Sikkim For Sikkimese – Distinct Identity Within the Union” (published in Feb 2009).

On the Chogyal's 33rd death anniversary (Jan 30, 2015), the article is being placed in Kazi's blog to remind the world  of the man who was much misunderstood and missed by his people nearly three and half decades after his death.

It is appointed for a man once to die and then the judgment. Every man is not a king, but every king is a man. Death is inevitable to all men.

A king must die, but his people live on and his hopes continue. A mortal man like the king achieves immortality when his people, his loved ones, and even his enemies acknowledge the greatness of his being and silently step into his shoes.

The 19^th of February 1982 will go down in the history of Sikkim. It was not the funeral day of the late Chogyal Palden Thondup Namgyal of Sikkim; it was the day of resurrection of the Sikkimese people whose long suppressed spirit found utterance. He who goes out mourning will come back rejoicing. The 19^th of February was such a day.

Over 30,000 people witnessed the happenings of the day. Some went away sad, some happy, and a few frustrated and defeated – determined to snub us down once again. The funeral day was a moment of reality. Truth cannot be suppressed for far too long. Sikkim will never be the same again.

The forces that work against its people cannot ignore the impact of the day. What they saw cannot be denied. What they heard cannot be forgotten. For on that day the people spoke. Their silent speeches and silken scarves will forever be recorded in the minds of those who witnessed the greatness of that day. The very fragrance of the day will last for eternity.

The spontaneous way in which the people showed their love for their leader who fought for them till his last breath cannot be passed as ‘mere sentiments’ or ‘emotionalism.’ Emotions are vehicles in which human beings express their true nature. Elections rarely convey the real aspirations of the people. We in Sikkim have witnessed this reality in the past few years.

The greatness of a man is known not by the use of flashy cars or three-piece suits; or even by the mighty mansions and highways that he has built. The greatness of a man, in the true sense, is measured by how much he is missed by his people after he is no more. The 19^th of February proved to the world the love the people of Sikkim had for their King, Miwang Chogyal Chempo Palden Thondup Namgyal of Sikkim.

We who live in Sikkim have witnessed, in the recent few years, the attempts of some of our honourable members of the Assembly to topple the existing government. But all their ceaseless efforts to overthrow the controversial Bhandari Government have been futile exercises.  To overthrow any government is not an easy task. But if the right move is made by the right men at the right moment it is not an impossible dream. It was the ‘pro-Sikkim’ ‘anti-merger’ party (Sikkim Janta Parishad led by N B Bhandari – editor) that put an end to the Kazi’s reign in 1979.

On 19^th February 10 honourable MLAs of the 32-seat State Assembly took a stand which not only threatened the very existence of the Bhandari Government but challenged the validity of the 36^th Amendment Act of the Indian Constitution which made Sikkim the 22nd State of India on 26^th April, 1975. These MLAs had submitted a statement acknowledging Crown Prince Wangchuk as the13th Consecrated Chogyal of Sikkim.

Whatever may have been their motives behind the act one cannot deny the impact of such a move. It hit the headlines. It was gossiped in every corner of Sikkim. The Chief Minister, Nar Bahadur Bhandari, lost no time in dealing with the signatories of the statement and threatened to prosecute them on charges of sedition. Upon the move taken by the CM, almost all the signatories signed another statement withdrawing their signatures from the earlier statement.

What will happen now is a different matter. What has been seen is the fact that one single, solitary move by a few people in power can cause havoc. We do not need ten thousand angry demonstrators shouting slogans to say something; we only need one lonely crusader for the right cause.

One notable public figure, acknowledging the mood of the people, silently remarked to another distinguished visitor for the occasion, “It seems that he (Chogyal) has become greater after his death.”

The Chogyal did not die of cancer. His death was largely due to other factors which caused the dreaded disease. It was our cowardice, our disloyalty, our betrayal, and our jealousy that put an end to his life.

Let it be known in Sikkim and elsewhere, that he, Denzong Chogyal Palden Thondup Namgyal, did not live for nothing; that he did not die in vain; that 19^th of February was not the end of Sikkim and her people, but the beginning of a bright new day – the dawn of a new era.