OCTOBER 2, 1999 HUNGER
STRIKE ON ‘NO SEAT, NO VOTE’ ISSUE
Just
days before the scheduled date of the proposed hunger strike on October 2,
1999, the OSU and SIBLAC formed the Sikkimese Nepalese Apex Committee (SNAC) in
Geyzing, West Sikkim. The new body was formed at a joint meeting of the OSU and
SIBLAC and was chaired by K.C. Pradhan. Buddhilal Khamdak, a young and educated
Nepali from the Limbu community in West Sikkim, was made the SNAC’s Convenor.
The newly-formed body supported the seat issue demand raised by the SIBLAC and
OSU and urged the two organisations to support the demand on restoration of
Assembly seats of the Sikkimese Nepalese.
On October 2, while the rest of the nation
celebrated the 130th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi (Gandhi Jayanti), the
Sikkimese people – represented by SIBLAC, OSU and SNAC – sought the blessing of
the ‘Father of the Nation’ and the Guardian Deities of Sikkim in their struggle
on restoration of their political rights. The 12-hour hunger strike by six
representatives of the three ethnic communities at the ‘BL House’ in Gangtok on
October 2 symbolically ushered in a new phase in the fight for restoration of
the political rights of bonafide Sikkimese belonging to the three ethnic
communities. Four members of the SIBLAC
– two convenors (Nima Lepcha and Pintso Bhutia), Vice-Convenor Tenzing Namgyal,
and a woman representative (Gyamsay Bhutia), the SNAC Advisor K.C. Pradhan and
myself as OSU Chairman took part in the historic one-day hunger strike on
October 2, 1999.
The 12-hour hunger strike by
Sikkimese representatives at the ‘BL House’, Gangtok, on October 2, 1999.
(Left to Right) Tenzing
Namgyal, Jigme N Kazi, Nima Lepcha, Pintso Bhutia, KC Pradhan and Gyamsay Bhutia.
We had actually chosen the premises where
the ‘Statues of Unity’ are installed for the venue of the one-day hunger
strike. Located in the heart of the capital at the northern end of the Mahatma
Gandhi Marg – the main market area in the capital – this venue would have been
the ideal place to begin a prolonged and intensive campaign on the seat issue.
However, the State Government refused to allow us to use this place. In fact,
it asked us to call off the hunger strike and the boycott call.
In a letter to the SIBLAC, dated September
17, 1999, Chief Secretary Sonam Wangdi said redressal of grievances should be
done through participation in the electoral process and pointed out that
boycott of elections “is the last action to be taken as the final resort when
all other means have failed.” The Chief Secretary simply could not see that we
had resorted to this method as “all other means”, including the electoral
process, in the past two decades failed to achieve the desired result. We
ignored the government’s plea and went ahead with the hunger strike.
However, it must be placed on record that if
it hadn’t been for the OSU the hunger strike and boycott call may have been put
off. Pradhan and I tactfully and very firmly exerted enough pressure on the
SIBLAC leadership, which was dithering on the issue at the last moment when
they were under extreme pressure. Even if the SIBLAC had backed off at the last
moment the OSU and SNAC would have certainly continued with the mission. No
amount of tactics and pressure would work on Pradhan and me and on this we were
very confident.
As planned, we held the hunger strike on
October 2 to remind the world that we were determined to struggle on till our
demand on restoration of our political rights were met. While others fought the
elections we fought for our people. We were not concerned with who wins or
loses in the polls; our main concern was that if the Assembly seats were not
restored to us in the near future we would be the ultimate losers and the
electoral process would then become a meaningless ritual as the Sikkimese
people would have no future to look forward to.
(Ref: The Lone Warrior: Exiled In My Homeland, Jigme
N. Kazi, Hill Media Publications, 2014.)
