Press release
Pawan Chamling, says that PS Goley’s who has made every family member a power centre has no moral ground to allege him of pariwarvad. He says that he has kept his word about not making any of his family members an MLA or MP for 30 years.
“Q. Chief Minister PS Goley has been attacking Komal Chamling saying that you are promoting dynastic politics and pariwarvad. What would you like to say in response?
Ans.What an irony! A man who introduced ‘PariwarTaan’ ideology in Sikkim in the name of ‘Pariwartan’ has the audacity to blame me for Pariwarvad! I really wish he had some sense of shame!
Someone whose family is filled with a half CM, ¼ CM, an MLA, the Party’s Health Minister etc. has no moral ground to talk about dynastic politics or pariwarvad. Every family member of Mr Goley has become a power centre. If he has any ethical sense, he shouldn’t even take my name in relation to pariwarvad in politics. In fact, as a bare minimum he should have the decency to admit that I have kept my word and it is he who needs to keep quiet and learn from me. On 4th March, 1993, on the day of our party’s formation, while speaking to the founding members, including Mr. PS Goley who was seated in front of me, I said that I would never give a party ticket to any of my family members. I have kept my word during my 25 long years as Sikkim’s Chief Minister and the SDF party’s President. Never once did I give our party’s ticket to any of my family members. Nor did I make my spouse half CM or quarter CM or an MLA. Nor did I make any of my children the SDF party’s minister. My family was outside the government and party.
On 12th December 1994, after the formation of the first SDF government, I called all my family members to Mintokgang and had a family meeting at 9 pm. I informed them that our relations would be confined to a family relation just as it had always been. I would be a husband and father. My becoming Chief Minister was not going to change anything in their relationship to me. I said, “You will have equal rights with the rest of the Sikkimese people, nothing more. Never introduce yourself as the Chief Minister’s wife or son or daughter. Never take my name unless in legal or official matters. You are citizens, not the Chief Minister’s family members.” I kept my word and they didn’t go beyond my advice. I can proudly say that my family has been extremely supportive of my commitment to politics and I have always commended my family’s full respect as a husband and a father. None of my children ever approached me asking me for a party ticket. Nor did they ever want to use their connection with me as their father to interfere with the state administration. Did you hear of any of my children distributing government’s welfare schemes or the government’s financial aid for medical treatment etc.? None of my children got government jobs. None of them received any government land allotment. My daughter had secured a medical seat on a merit basis. But she voluntarily forfeited the seat allowing another girl to take that seat. She was the daughter of my cabinet colleague who was next in the list after my daughter. Mr. Goley has no idea how I encouraged my family to keep themselves as far away from government endowments as possible.
Mr PS Goley has crossed all limits in speaking lies and becoming shameless. He has not only given all the key positions of the government and the SKM party to his family members but he has also roped in all his relatives from Darjeeling, Dooars, Kalimpong and Nepal. All the far and close relatives whom he likes surround Mintokgang. Most of the police stations in Sikkim are under the control of his relatives. He has his relatives stationed in key positions to control panchayats, businesses, and departmental administration. The SKM party’s picnics, programs, rallies, joining drama, celebrations are the business enterprise opportunities for his relatives. They have made crores of money out of these event managements. Mr Goley’s relatives are building houses outside Sikkim, going places, shopping and having fun with the money from Mintokgang. He is the Chief Minister of his family and relatives. He has no sense of shame when he talks about pariwarvad and blames me. What a joke!!
The Sikkimese people haven’t forgotten his pledge that he made in a public speech saying that as soon as he became Chief Minister, he would ask his son to resign as MLA. That was his promise to the people about not indulging in pariwarvad. What happened to that promise? Moreover, I challenge him to appoint a full-fledged Health Minister and give him complete freedom to run the ministry without his family’s interference.
Regarding Komal, I urge Mr. PS Goley to learn to be sensible about what he is saying. He has no right to talk about her Harvard University degree. He has no idea what he is talking about. If the Chief Minister can use his office to get admission for his candidates in Harvard University, why doesn’t he use it? How many Sikkimese children got admission in Harvard during the last number of years using the privilege of his office as Chief Minister?
In fact, as a CM, he should have congratulated her and used her story to inspire many other Sikkimese youth. How low does he want to go and how cheap does he want to become by misrepresenting her educational feat. He should stop acting like a joker.
Komal Chamling is an individual with all the fundamental rights to choose to become what she aspires to become as does any other child of mine and any other Sikkimese child. She has her own family. She can make her own decisions. If she wants to commit her life to Sikkim politics, who are we to stop her? During our government, I never gave her or any other child of mine the party ticket to become MLA or MP and that was how I kept my word.
I would be happy to see educated youth joining politics and lifting the level of politics from where the SKM party has taken it. Sikkim has to change the politics of lies, obscenities, threats, political violence, organized crime, nepotism, compromise, incompetence, and their ilk.
Finally, let me say this – my long political career is there for everyone to see. Let the Sikkimese people be the judge of whether I kept my word about not making my family members MLAs or MP or not.”
Bishnu Dulal
General Secy., Press & Publicity Affairs
SDF.
12.03.2023
