Autonomy and Dzumsa Cannot Go Hand In
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05 May, 2004; 1 NATIONAL SECURITY MORE IMPORTANT SUBHASH DEEPAK BAGSNOW! SAHITYA AKADEMI AWARD THAN NATHULA REOPENING - CONG FOR TRANSLATION DETAILS ON pg 5 DETAILS ON pg 3 SBICAR Bharat Sanchar LOAN Wednesday, 05 May, 2004 Vol. 3 No. 35 Gangtok Rs. 3 Nigam Ltd. the convenient option most NOTICE Sanction & Disbursement in 1 day It is notified that Telephone Lowest interest rate at 9% Adalat will be held on 28/05/ No prepayment charges 04 at 11 A.M. in the cham- No processing charge ber of General Manager, Loan up to 90% Telecom, Gtk. The Sub- Free accidental death scribers are requested to insurance of the kindly file their complaints borrower regarding (1) excess billing Repayment up to 84 (2) Service (3) Non-provi- months sion of New Telephone due to various reasons etc. by contact PT Bhutia 98320 35786 20/05/04 addressed to the or Chettri 94340 12824 AO (TR) O/o the GMT/GTK AUTONOMY AND DZUMSA CANNOT GO HAND IN HAND: GYAMTSO the Congress was contradicting it- will ensure the safeguarding of the edly bears the mark of a forged seal of the said letter. SARIKAH ATREYA self by promising both options to Dzumsa system,” he said. and signature of the Karmapa is be- Along with the letter, Mr. GANGTOK, 04 May: The Con- the people. The SDF has also taken strong ing received by members of the Gyamtso also produced a stack of gress’ promise to the people of “How can the Congress prom- exceptions of the allegations made Bhutia-Lepcha community in mail, pamphlets and documents which is North District that the area would ise both autonomy for the district by the Congress that it was trying Mr. Gyatso contended. currently being circulated in the be turned into an autonomous dis- as well as Dzumsa for Chungthang? to dilute the rights of the people of He also produced the “fake” State, allegedly by the Opposition trict if voted into power has drawn The traditional Dzumsa is a cus- the State. seal, which was used to stamp the parties. According to him, the pam- flak from the ruling Sikkim Demo- tomary law system. Autonomy and “I want to ask them how we are letter. Although he denied to reveal phlets and documents are intended cratic Front [SDF]. Dzumsa cannot go hand in hand,” doing that. I want them to come up how he managed to get the seal, Mr. at polarizing the voters against the Rajya Sabha MP and spokes- he said here today. with specific instances which sug- Gyamtso said that his endevour was SDF by stirring communal senti- person of the party, PT Gyamtso, The SDF has been of the opin- gest that SDF was diluting the to tell the people of the fake letter ments in the State. He, however, said here today that the Congress ion that the traditional Dzumsa sys- rights of the Sikkimese people. and be wary of the people who refused to name the party indulg- was misleading and confusing the tem, which is unique to North Unless they come up with substan- came collecting funds on the basis ing in this activity. people by giving contradictory Sikkim, would be diluted if the area tive evidence, they should stop ac- statements. is converted into an autonomous cusing the SDF,” he said. Pointing out a recent statement district. Mr. Gyamtso also produced a of SPCC [I] president Nar Bahadur “The Congress’ contention that letter which claims to be written by HONGHONG KONGKONG Bhandari promising autonomous autonomy will make the Dzumsa the 17th Karmapa seeking dona- District status for the North and system stronger is not practical. We tions for restoration of an ancient BAZAAR also a separate Dzumsa for firmly believe that North Sikkim monastery, Tana Thekchok Norbu Chungthang, Mr. Gyamtso said that should be left as a district, which Choe Ling. This letter, which alleg- Any Item Rs. 90 to Rs. 150 FIRST Gift Items, Crockery & Other TIME IN GNLF leaders don’t care for Cong candidate, Attractive Goods! SIKKIM it’s the Ghising ‘hukum’ that they follow HOTEL BAYUL, MG MARG, GANGTOK BIRENDRA S. DARJEELING, 04 May: The GNLF today launched its campaign trail with its first ever rally and public meeting for the forthcoming MP elections. The meet- ing was organized to make public their stand regarding support to the Congress and to make people aware of the reasons behind this unprecedented move given the fact that GNLF has boycotted the last two MP elections in the Darjeeling Hills on issues which still remain unresolved. Despite the expressed aim to inform the people of the reasons behind its current stand, the Darjeeling Branch Committee of the GNLF, the organizer of today’s fanfare, seemed quite a confused lot and could come up only with theo- ries to explain the Supremo Subhash Ghising’s decision. It was mainly the Gorkhaland dream that the leaders harped on. It appears that the exit polls had played a major role and the GNLF drew the conclusion that if the Congress managed to come to power at the Centre, Gorkhaland would also come a step closer. Though the GNLF has preferred to remain silent on the Gorkhaland demand till now, its leaders today blamed the NDA Government for not fulfilling the demand. “During the NDA rule, states like Uttaranchal, Jharkhand and Chattisgarh were created, nothing was done to create a separate state of Gorkhaland,” said Deepak Gurung, president of the Branch Committee. He also went on to state that only the Congress was sympathetic to the Gorkhaland cause since it was during the tenure of Late Rajiv Gandhi that the DGHC was formed. turn to pg 4 CMYK 2; NOW!; 05 May, 2004 ED-SPACE Chinamen Eat Snakes! -47- and to have things as he wished my sahib how she was fighting me NOW! y master considered them. In the beginning I was some- and for what reason. Sahib already FIRST WITH THE NEWS whether he should keep what afraid that, when I had paid knew her character and understood Mme on or choose some- the wages to the other servants, they that she was jealous of me not for Where There’s Smoke, There one else, but eventually he took pity might complain to my master that having got Nyima’s job. He did not on me, thinking that a boy without they had not received their full pay- want us to fight. He told Kanchi Should Be A Fine parents who had come to his house ment, but after all I found that they that she should vacate the room, as must be a relation of his from a pre- were not the people to say such Twan Yang needed it. So one day The government has finally cracked its whip on cigarettes. The pow- erful nicotine lobby has been snubbed and now cigarette compa- vious life. So he determined to obey things. I came to trust them com- she went away to another place, but nies can no longer attach glorious slogans like the possibility of fate and keep me on, God willing, pletely and my master fully trusted she continued to receive the full living life kingsize or the promises of belonging to an exclusive club. for the remainder of his life in his me, and so everything went well wages of Nyima every month as a Even the hoardings at the wholesalers cannot carry anything more adopted land, India. He spoke seri- after all. pension, thirty-five rupees. than the name and picture of the product. The warning at these ously to me and said that I had to But whenever they saw me, For the first time in my life I now boards are now mandated to be even more strongly worded with be as honest and faithful and clean Nyima’s children called me names had a nice room of my own to pro- the option of “Tobacco causes Cancer,” or “Tobacco Kills.” Sale of as his old servant Nyima, and I and jeered at me, saying that Chi- tect me from heat and rain and to be cigarettes to minors is also banned now and the onus of proving promised that I would do my very namen eat snakes. The people on my home. Nice as the place was, that the buyer is not a minor lies with the seller. Cigarettes, every- best. The sahib said that he would the roof would laugh and believe however I was afraid to stay there one has known for a long time are potentially life-threatening habits fix my wages at twenty-five rupees these stories. I did not alone. People told me that the dead which, just because they have societal approval, are not as frowned monthly with an increase of two like to hear anything Nyima would come back in the night upon as addiction to other chemical substances. It is an addiction annas monthly up to thirty ru- of the kind, as I had as a spook, so I wanted someone to still and the amended Act tries to cover this loophole too. Smoking pees, as he used to give Nyima already heard it so keep me company. I thought of Mr. in closed public spaces is now banned. Only restaurants with a seat- in the first years. Trin Chen, who worked for ing capacity of more than thirty are allowed smoking spaces which From this time onward I my master in the office of the have to be segregated. This is obviously a device to make the ciga- was put completely in charge Royal Asiatic Society of rette smokers feel alienated and give them one more reason to quit.