Gangtok: The Sikkim Democratic Front (SDF) on Friday announced that it will not contest the upcoming Urban Local Body (ULB) elections, alleging that the reservation of seats across communities is “unfair, unconstitutional and based on an unverified census.”
Addressing a press conference, SDF vice-president Krishna Kharel said the party had decided to boycott the elections until what it described as “just and proportionate representation” is ensured.
He questioned the State government’s claim that a census was conducted in 2022, as stated by Chief Minister Prem Singh Tamang during a one-day Assembly session on Thursday.
Kharel said, “The Chief Minister stated in the Assembly that a census was conducted in 2022, but where is the record, and when was it notified or made public? As far as we know, the only legitimate census is the 2011 national census, and any reservation should be based on that.” He further alleged that relying on an unannounced survey amounts to a violation of Article 14 of the Constitution, which guarantees equality before the law and equal protection of laws.
Citing community-wise distribution, Kharel claimed that the Gurung community has been allocated only one seat across the State, the Limboo community two reserved seats along with one unreserved, while the Tamang community has been given eight reserved seats. He argued that, based on earlier census data, Central OBCs should have received around 17 seats instead of eight, and State OBCs around 14 to 15 seats instead of 11. “This reservation has been done arbitrarily without proportionate representation. It is against the Constitution and the law,” he said.
The SDF leader described the alleged 2022 exercise as a “party-based and unannounced census,” adding that no all-party consultation or public participation was undertaken before determining reservations. “A population survey cannot be carried out unilaterally. There should have been discussions with all political parties and consensus before arriving at such decisions,” he said.
He added that the party had submitted its grievances to the State Election Commission but received no concrete response. “We placed all our concerns before the Commission but were told to come later. Till now, there has been no proper hearing,” he said.
Raising concerns over the timing of the elections, Kharel said the polls were declared within six days of announcing the reservation matrix, leaving little scope for political parties to respond. He also questioned the urgency of conducting ULB elections in newly created districts such as Pakyong and Soreng, stating that these areas are yet to be fully developed institutionally.
Reiterating the party’s stand, Kharel said, “Until all communities receive fair representation, we will not participate in the elections. Accepting this reservation would mean endorsing injustice.” He rejected suggestions that the boycott reflects reluctance to contest, stating that the party is instead fighting for constitutional rights and equitable representation.
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