Sikkim simmers over SC verdict labelling Sikkimese-Nepalis ‘foreigners’

The four ethnically dominant communities in Sikkim are the Nepalis, the Lepchas, the Bhutias, and the Sherpas. But, around 500 families primarily comprising Marwaris and people from a handful of other states, including Haryana, sought exemption from paying income tax because of having settled in Sikkim before 1946. The other ethnic communities comprise over 95 per cent of the state’s population and are exempt from paying the tax.

The Supreme Court on January 13 pronounced its judgment in the 2013 Association of Old Settlers of Sikkim vs the Union of India case to which the state government is a party. With the government not objecting, the court ruled in favour of the old settlers, exempting them from paying income tax and calling the differentiation made between them and the other communities “discriminatory”. Though the Sikkimese civil society has not been against the court verdict, it has objected to the “use of foreigner tag” for the Sikkimese-Nepali community.

In its judgment, the court said, “In 1948, the Sikkim Income Tax Manual, 1948 (SITM) was promulgated by the Ruler of Sikkim (the Chogyal). Under the SITM, all persons engaged in business were subjected to tax irrespective of their origin. Therefore, there was no difference made out between the original inhabitants of Sikkim, namely, the Bhutia-Lepchas and the persons of foreign origin settled in Sikkim like the Nepalis or persons of Indian origin who had settled down in Sikkim generations back.’’

Journalist Pema Wangchuk, Consulting Editor of Gangtok-based daily Summit Times, said, “This is an extremely emotive issue for the Nepali community here as well as the people of Sikkim. This foreigner tag resurfaces ever so often, and this is unfortunate. Nepali is the ethnicity and not nationality. But since the same word is used for both, people often conflate the two.”

Former Lok Sabha MP P D Rai of the SDF said the court’s remarks deeply hurt the sentiments of the people of Sikkim. “These were disparaging remarks and this is an extremely emotional issue for us. We will soon be calling for President’s Rule in the state. The problem is two-fold — the fact that the court made these remarks, but more importantly that they were made in the presence of the advocate general of the state and he did not object to it. We had called for a rally on Friday and received support from civil society.”

The Kingdom of Sikkim came into existence in 1642 and remained independent for 333 years till its merger with the Union of India in 1975. The original kingdom held a large territory ranging from parts of present-day Bhutan, Bihar and West Bengal to Nepal and Bangladesh. In the 18th and 19th centuries, a lot of this territory was ceded to the British during various conflicts. The imperial British government took over the control of the kingdom in 1888. But after conflicts, Great Britain and China signed a convention in 1890 to settle the boundaries of Sikkim and Tibet, with China recognising British control over Sikkim. After the British took control of Sikkim, British-Indian subjects were allowed to hold government employment.

Earlier, in 1861, a treaty between the British and the King of Sikkim restored the kingdom to the Namgyal dynasty but with the condition that Sikkim would abolish all restrictions on travellers and monopolies in trade between the British territories and Sikkim. British subjects were permitted to trade, reside, and travel through Sikkim and British Indians came to reside in the kingdom.

The Sikkim Income Tax Manual, 1948, was promulgated by the Ruler of Sikkim (the Chogyal). The India-Sikkim Peace Treaty was entered into in 1950 and as per this treaty, Sikkim was to be the protectorate of India. Subsequently, to check the influx of foreigners into Sikkim, the Chogyal promulgated the Sikkim Subject Register, 1961, which not only recognised the original inhabitants of Sikkim but also all those who wanted to become subjects of the kingdom by relinquishing the citizenship of any other country.

The ancestors of the 500 families who approached the Supreme Court for tax exemption, while residents of Sikkim for generations, had chosen not to give up their Indian citizenship and were not a “Sikkim subject”.

In 2008, after years of negotiations, the Union government exempted the residents of the state who had Sikkim subject certificates and their descendants from paying income tax. Soon afterwards, the old settlers approached the Supreme Court.

Political analysts said the SKM, the ruling party, was in a fix. SKM leaders and members joined the initial rallies and marches. But, as the protests started taking on an anti-state government colour and effigies of Chief Minister Prem Singh Tamang were burnt, the ruling party’s support faded.

To control the damage, Tamang has called a special Assembly session on February 9, ostensibly to discuss the issue and mollify the Nepalese community which makes up almost 70 per cent of the state’s population.

He has also tweeted and issued statements saying that his government has filed a review petition in the Supreme Court to expunge the remarks. The move has the support of Union Law Minister Kiren Rijiju, according to him. But with the protests picking up momentum in the last few days, the CM has said he will visit New Delhi to meet Rijiju. Additional Advocate General Sudesh Joshi resigned on February 1 over the matter and the following day state health minister Dr Mani Kumar Sharma stepped down from the Cabinet saying that the government had not taken the issue seriously enough.

A Joint Action Committee (JAC) leading the protests has called for another statewide bandh on February 8 (Thursday). It has appealed that each family send at least three members to join a rally that will be held during the bandh, and has asked businesses to remain shut.

(With PTI inputs)