candidature from Upper Burtuk and Rateypani-Namthang constituency. Golay was the sitting MLA from Upper Burtuk. The fate of the candidates of both parties-SKM and SDF - have been sealed in the EVM boxes which will be opened on 16th May. The vote counting centers are TNA Auditorium Hall in Gangtok for East district, Zilla Panchayat Bhavan in Mangan for North district, Kyongsa girls Senior Secondary School in Geyzing for West district and Namchi Senior Secondary School Auditorium Hall for South district.

Now two theories are rife in this tiny Himalayan state: One is that Chamling is still charming and he will break the record of Jyoti Basu, the longest serving Chief Minister in India by forming the next Government; another is that PS Golay will storm Mintokgang, the power centre of the State, this time ending the Chamling era in this Himalayan State. CPM patriarch late Jyoti Basu ran the Government for 23 years continuously in West Bengal, the neighboring State of Sikkim. Pawan Chamling government also has pass 20 years in the State, setting the record of longest serving Chief Minister in Sikkim. His predecessor Nar Bahadur Bhandari had run the Government for 15 years and 6 months. It is Chamling who toppled Bhandari government by breaking away from Bhandari’s party Sikkim Sangram Parishad. Much in the same manner, now PS Golay has also revolted against Chamling by severing ties with the Sikkim Democratic Front (SDF) and forming his own party Sikkim Krantikari Morcha. Golay was the most trusted lieutenant of Chamling in his cabinet and was a three time MLA of Chamling’s party. The pole plank of PS Golay is the same that Pawan Chamling had raised 20 years ago against Nar Bahadur Bhandari. Chamling was an important minister during the Bhandari regime. He revolted against Bhandari with accusations that Bhandari stifled democracy. He even paraded through the assembly with a candle in his hand in search of democracy. In the same manner PS Golay has revolted against the Chamling Government. Accusing Chamling of suppressing democracy, Golay also raised the question in the assembly of Chemling’s ‘dictatorship’ only to be manhandled by the Assembly marshal. “Sikkim has had enough of the one-man rule of Pawan Chamling for 20 years. The State now needs a Government which will really work for the people,” Golay said. He has also accused Chamling of corruption and favouritism.

Sikkim is the only State where there is no opposition in the Assembly. SDF has occupied all 32 seats in the assembly along with a lone MP seat. In 2004 Congress was able to get a Sangh seat, but the seat also went in the SDF’s kitty in the 2009 elections. The Sangha seat is reserved for Buddhist monks. Around 2900 monks from over 100 monasteries in the State elect one Lama who represents them in Assembly.  But this time, there is a 50/50 chance for Chamling to form the next Government. “Whether the SDF will retain its power in the State is a matter of curiosity, since there is a strong wave of SKM in the State. SDF can’t maintain its position as it did earlier. Even if it comes to power, it won’t enjoy the full majority in the assembly. It has to face tough opposition,” says CP Dahal, a journalist in the State.

Anoop Rai