Accommodation and National Integration These cases have shown us that even after years of independence, some of the issues of national integration are not fully resolved. We have seen that regional aspirations ranging from demands of statehood and economic development to autonomy and separation keep coming up. The period since accentuated these tensions and tested the capacity of democratic politics to accommodate the demands of diverse sections of the society. What lessons can we draw from these examples?
First and the most elementary lesson is that regional aspirations are very much a part of democratic politics. Expression of regional issues is not an aberration or an abnormal phenomenon. Even in smaller countries like the United Kingdom there are regional aspirations in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Spain faces secessionist movement from the Basques and so does Sri Lanka from the Tamils.
A large and diverse democracy like India must deal with regional aspirations on a regular basis. Nation building is an ongoing process. Sikkim’s merger At the time of independence, Sikkim was a ‘protectorate’ of India. It meant that while it was not a part of India, it was also not a fully sovereign country.
Sikkim’s defence and foreign relations were looked after by India, while the power of internal administration was with the Chogyal, Sikkim’s monarch. This arrangement ran into difficulty as the Chogyal was unable to deal with the democratic aspirations of the people. An overwhelming majority of Sikkim’s population was Nepali. But the Chogyal was seen as perpetuating the rule of a small elite from the minority Lepcha-Bhutia community.
The anti-Chogyal leaders of both the communities sought and got support from the government of India. The first democratic elections to Sikkim assembly in were swept by Sikkim Congress which stood for greater integration with India. The assembly first sought the status of ‘associate state’ and then in April passed a resolution asking for full integration with India. This was followed by a hurriedly organised referendum that put a stamp of popular approval on the assembly’s request.
The Indian Parliament accepted this request immediately and Sikkim became the 22nd State of the Indian union. Chogyal did not accept this merger and his supporters accused the government of India of foul play and use of force. Yet the merger enjoyed popular support and did not become a divisive issue in Sikkim’s politics. Kazi Lhendup Dorji Khangsarpa ( ): Leader of democracy movement in Sikkim; founder of Sikkim Praja Mandal and later leader of the Sikkim State Congress; in founded the Sikkim National Congress; after an electoral victory, he led the movement for integration of Sikkim with India; after the integration, Sikkim Congress merged with the Indian National Congress.