Sikkim forum asks defectors to quit

RAJEEV RAVIDAS, TT, 17 Aug 2019, Gangtok: The Sikkim Progressive Youth Forum on Friday said it would launch a movement demanding the resignations, on moral ground, of all 12 MLAs of the Sikkim Democratic Front who had recently defected to the BJP and the Sikkim Krantikari Morcha.

Addressing a presser here, the members of the forum, which espouses various issues concerning the ordinary people, said the defection of the SDF MLAs was a violation of the people's mandate and is also a mockery of democracy. "We deplore the defections and demand that all those who have defected to other parties should resign as MLAs on moral ground," said Shanker Sharma, a member of the forum.

Sharma said in order to put pressure on the defectors, the forum would mobilise citizens under the banner of Citizens' Forum Against Defection and carry out a mass campaign against them. "For starters, we will hold a rally in Gangtok on August 18. We request all democracy-loving people of the state to join us in our campaign," he said.

The forum members said the defectors had lost the right to attend the Assembly and they should seek a fresh mandate. "We are not against them joining any party per se, but are against the manner in which they have betrayed the people who had voted for them to carry forward the promises made by the SDF," said Sharma, while pointing out that 10 out of the 12 MLAs have joined the BJP which had secured a mere 1.62 per cent of the votes in the April election.

Asked if their campaign was only against the 10 who have joined the BJP, the forum members said it was against all the defectors, including the two who have joined the ruling SKM.

The mass defection appears not to have gone done well with the vast majority of the people and there is a palpable sense of betrayal. This is the second instance of en masse defection in the state. 1n 2015, seven of the 10 SKM MLAs had defected to the then ruling SDF. Interestingly, all the five defectors who were fielded by SDF in the recent election lost..