Ace footballer Bhaichung Bhutia’s Hamro Sikkim Party (HSP) senior vice president Ran Bahadur Subba has accused the ruling Sikkim Democratic Front (SDF) government of giving a ‘step-motherly treatment’ towards the Sherpa community of Sikkim.
In a press statement, the HSP senior vice president mentioned that the State government recently passed a legislation in the Assembly to restrict sale and purchase of private lands.
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He contended that the State government should have sought public feedback before taking out a law on a sensitive subject like sale and purchase of lands.
The ‘Sikkim Regulation of Transfer of Land (Amendment) Bill’ passed by the Assembly last month restricts sale of land within the specific groups while also mandating that a person who has only minimum of 3 acres of land would not be allowed to sold such land at all in any manner.
The Land Transfer Regulation (Amendment) Bill seeks to protect alienation of land holdings of specific communities of Sikkim.
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However, there is no change in the existing system for sale and purchase of lands belonging to the Sherpa community.
Ran Bahadur said the Sherpa community has been left out from the purview of the bill where one group of communities cannot buy or sale land to other group of communities as defined in the bill.
“The State Government has treated the Sherpa community like a step-mother and denied them their rights. As per the decision taken by the State government, the Sherpa community cannot buy the land of the Bhutia-Lepcha communities and also the land of other communities. However, anyone can buy the lands belonging to the Sherpa community,” stated the HSP senior president in the press release.
He further condemned the indifference shown towards the Sherpa community and requested the State Govdernment that the bill is amended and justice be meted out to the Sherpa community of Sikkim.