Sikkim: Chogyal's waning hope

Palden Thondup Namgyal who is lying in a coma after taking an overdose of barbiturates would not have become a public personality had not his elder brother died in an aircrash. Palden Thondup, just turned 53, ascended the gaddi in 1963 after the death of his father. The late Maharajah of Sikkim was a recluse who spent most of his time painting various views of the Kanchenjunga range which is visible from Gangtok, the capital of Sikkim.The state of Sikkim has a rough area of 3,200 square miles and a population of a little over two lakhs. The original people of Sikkim, the gentle Lepchas, were driven down the mountains by marauding Tibetans locally known as Bhutiyas. But for hard work in the fields a number of Nepalese were induced to come into the state and in course of time they formed the majority, as much as about 75 per cent, of the total population. Sikkim was a member of the Chamber of Princes and the British considered it another princely state along with the rest of six hundred-odd states.The Sikkim National Congress, formed as a unit of the Indian National Congress, was a powerful organization at the time of Indian independence in 1947 under the leadership of Kazi Lhendup Dorji, the present Chief Minister of the state. There was a strong agitation at the time for merger with India. The blue and gold palace of the Maharajah was surrounded by demonstrators and the tension could only be resolved by the intervention of Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru who successfully soothed ruffled feelings.It was after the second marriage of Palden Thondup Namgyal to Hope Cooke, an American socialite, that attempts were made by him to secure a separate identity for himself and Sikkim. He rigged up a legislative council where, through an electoral gimmick, the Tibetans who were personally loyal to him, would always be in a majority. The vast numbers of Nepalese in the state were refused the right to vote, Later, Palden Thondup Namgyal took the title of Chogyal instead of the "Maharajah" which he had inherited from British times. Photographs of the Chogyal and his wife were compulsorily put up in public and private institutions. This gave room to considerable indignation among the public. The Chogyal tried to silence public criticism by force through his Tibetan Mafia. The wife of Kazi Lhendup Dorji, a Belgian, was exiled from Sikkim and was compelled to reside in Kalimpong in India.Vague reports went around that the Chogyal was in touch with certain foreign agencies to promote the idea of a sovereign state of Sikkim. Hope Cooke's travels abroad and her pretensions to royalty gave ground for suspicion that some underhand moves were afoot in this sensitive state that borders the Tibetan region of China. Meanwhile, economic conditions in the state began to show steady decline. In the mountainous areas where people lived by rearing sheep, cattle and yaks, the population is very sparse and economic conditions are static. But in the dense plains, stark poverty was the fate of tens of thousands of Nepalese-descended Sikkimese without political rights.The Chogyal himself was the chief investor in the few industries set up in the state. He held stock in the local brewery. He owned the only habitable hotel in Gangtok and he also owned two cinema theatres in Gangtok.Discontent that had been boiling inside the state for several years spilled over in 1973 when there were widespread disturbances in the state. In Gangtok at this time, the police had vanished and their place had been taken by volunteers of the United Front of the various political parties. In many places there had been clashes. The palace guards, not many in number, could not control the situation even though they had been equipped by modern arms like machine guns. Rampaging crowds met every evening at the Palden Stadium and demanded the resignation of the Chogyal and the inclusion of Sikkim as an integral part of the Indian Union. Some intemperate remarks by the sister of the Chogyal poured oil on the fire. Finally, the Indian army had to take over disturbed parts of Gangtok and other areas and bring a measure of peace and stability. Later, in a referendum held in the State, the people of Sikkim by an overwhelming majority decided to accede to India and parliament later ratified the decision.To these pressures on the Chogyal was added the emotional stress of his wife's sullen departure for the United States taking their two younger children along with her. Since then, the Chogyal has been under the necessity of coming to terms with reality. It is not known whether he is a habitual user of barbiturates or has been drugging himself only lately. Much of the predicament he finds himself in now must be traced to the unachievable ambitions of his American wife.Published By: AtMigration Published On: Apr 11, 2015 14:46 IST--- ENDS ---

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Sikkim: Chogyal's waning hope

Palden Thondup Namgyal who is lying in a coma after taking an overdose of barbiturates would not have become a public personality had not his elder brother died in an aircrash.

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