SKM leaders meet Sikkim governor, stake claim to form government

Gangtok, May 25 (PTI): A Sikkim Krantikari Morcha (SKM) delegation led by its president P S Golay on Saturday called on Governor Ganga Prasad and staked claim to form the next government in the state.

The SKM leaders, however, were tight-lipped about the name of their legislature party chief.

The SKM, founded in 2013, won a slender majority in the 32-member legislative assembly by bagging 17 seats against 15 won by the SDF.

Speaking to the media on the Raj Bhawan premises after meeting the Governor, Golay said his party has requested Prasad to invite the SKM to form the next government in Sikkim.

To a query on who will become the chief minister, he said a decision about it will be made soon.

SKM sources said its legislature party has authorised Golay to decide on the chief minister’s issue.

Though Golay did not contest the polls, the party rank and file want him to become the next chief minister, the sources said.

The Governor is learnt to be consulting legal experts about implications of inviting Golay to take oath as the chief minister, given that he was convicted to a year’s imprisonment in a corruption case and had served prison term. He was also disqualified as MLA in 2017.

The SKM unseated the Sikkim Democratic Front (SDF) government led by five-time chief minister Pawan Kumar Chamling.

Bhaichung Bhutia congratulates SKM for victory in Sikkim

India’s former football captain and Hamro Sikkim Party (HSP) working president Bhaichung Bhutia on Saturday congratulated the Sikkim Krantikari Morcha (SKM) on winning the assembly polls and the lone Lok Sabha seat in Sikkim.

The SKM won a slender majority in the 32-member assembly by bagging 17 seats against 15 won by the Sikkim Democratic Front (SDF).

In a video message, Bhutia said, “I congratulate the SKM and its president P S Golay for its victory in the Sikkim assembly polls.”

Bhutia had formed the HSP in April last year to usher in a corruption-free Sikkim, but failed to impress the electorate, with all its 20 candidates, who had contested the assembly polls, forfeiting deposits.

He fared miserably losing deposits from two assembly seats, Gangtok and Tumen-Linging, that he had contested.

He polled 70 votes (0.94 per cent of total votes polled)) in Gangtok to finish fourth, while in Tumen-Linging he bagged 234 votes (1.76 per cent of total votes polled) to finish third.

Accepting the verdict with humility, the former football legend said, his party was a nascent outfit, but determined to do well in future to serve the state and its people.