Pact paves way for a democratic set up in Sikkim

As Sikkim marks 50 yrs of statehood, HT's report on pact that facilitated its merger with India

- Prithvis Chakravarti

NEW DELHI: Sikkim's popularly elected representatives will administer law and order, finance, land revenue and economic development plans, according to the tripartite agreement between India, the Chogyal and the representatives of the state's three main political parties, the Janata Congress, the National Congress and the National Party that was signed in Gangtok last night. These portfolios, hitherto under the direct charge of the Chogyal, were a bone of contention between the hereditary ruler and the elected representatives under the diarchical constitutional arrangements replaced by the agreement.

The agreement, which was made public today (May 9, 1973), provides for a State Assembly elected on adult suffrage and an executive council responsible to the Assembly. The Chogyal, under the agreement, becomes a constitutional ruler with direct executive authority only over "the Palace establishment and the Sikkim Guards," the latter a 200-strong armed constabulary.