SIKKIM: All economic refugees will be pushed back in SNPP govt: Adikhari
Posted by barunroy on March 25, 2009
FROM SIKKIM EXPRESS
GANGTOK: Continuing the local protection pitch of his party, Sikkim National Peoples Party (SNPP) president Biraj Adikhari urged upon the Sikkimese electorate to restore the ‘lost’ self-pride and glory of Sikkim.
“No force can suppress the Sikkimese people and Sikkim. First preference must be given to Sikkimese in all sectors in the State. Sikkimese people have given up their country and we should not be afraid of any force. Time has come to restore our glory and pride or else the Sikkimese people will be wiped out”, thundered Mr. Adikhari yesterday during the party public meeting at Singtam bazaar.
The SNPP president asserted that Sikkimese people do not need to be educated on nationalism as the people had embraced India by giving up their country. He reiterated the SNPP’s demand for an Associate State status for Sikkim from the Centre.
In his address, Mr. Adikhari also reiterated SNPP’s demand for restoration of Nepali seats in the State Assembly. The existence of Sikkimese people is under great threat due to the non-attainment of the desired democracy and lost of Assembly seats of the majority Nepalis of Sikkimese origin despite the merger for democracy that took place 35 years ago, he said.
Issuing a stern warning to the Centre and the ruling SDF party, Mr. Adikhari said that though the Sikkimese people had given up their country for becoming Indians, the Sikkimese people have a unique identity. “We never wanted Sikkim to be a camp for the economic refugees of Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan. The Union government must respond or else give back the promised Associate State status for Sikkim”, he said. He promised to send packing all the ‘economic refugees’ from Sikkim if his party is voted to power.
The SNPP president claimed that the pursuit of only personal gains by all those parties who ruled Sikkim has seen the transfer of all opportunities to the outsiders. He said that the Constitutional shield of Article 371F for Sikkim has been mutilated several times for personal interests. “Other parties are now harping on Article 371F after SNPP took up the issue. Our party had first highlighted with proof that Article 371F has been violated 184 times”, he said.
Stating that SNPP is above electoral politics, Mr. Adikhari said that his party will go for elections only after protecting the interests of Sikkim and Sikkimese people. “We will seek votes from the people only 15 days before the polls. We don’t care whether we lose or win but we will definitely remain silent when others are usurping the rights of Sikkim and Sikkimese people”, he said.
Pitching his local protection call even shriller, the SNPP president vowed to annihilate all the under construction hydel power projects in Sikkim as ‘the developers have not given any priority to the locals’. “Teesta river is as holy as Ganga river for Sikkim and who gave the permission to dry up our holy river. All the hydel power projects will be wiped out by blasting in the event of SNPP government”, he said.
In this context, Mr. Adikhari accused the ruling government of turning deaf, dumb and blind over the on going protests against the proposed mega hydel projects in Dzongu, North Sikkim.
Similarly, SNPP treasurer Diley Namgyal Kazi called upon the people to ‘wake up’ for paying their dues to the ‘Sikkim Mother’ and ensure ‘their rights and interests’.
