Sikkim: Bhaichung Bhutia joins SDF, merges his party HSP with SDF

Reported by Prakash Adhikari | Copy edited by Bhaskar Kalita

Putting months of speculations to rest, the Hamro Sikkim Party (HSP) founder and president Bhaichung Bhutia on Thursday joined the Sikkim Democratic Front (SDF) and merged HSP with SDF. Interesting to note that Bhuita had launched HSP in 2018 to take on SDF.
The merger of HSP with SDF comes months ahead of the Sikkim Assembly elections to be held early next year.
Bhutia and his party workers joined the SDF in presence of former 5-time Chief Minister and SDF chief Pawan Kumar Chamling.
Reports were doing the rounds since September of Bhutia joining the SDF. Prior to the formal joining, HSP and the SDF were seen joining hands on a number of occasions such as the Sikkimey Ekta Yatra (March for Sikkim Unity) held in the month of April.
In July too, top leaders of the HSP and the SDF had convened a meeting to deliberate on several keys of the state.
Bhutia, the football legend from the state, was spotted at several SDF events in different parts of the state. Most recently, Bhutia was seen at a closed door meeting with SDF leaders discussing the SDF flag at his home town, Barfung. He was also seen with senior SDF leader and former Minister D D Bhutia.
On September 13, the merger became more obvious when Bhutia himself made an announcement stating that only dates were left to be confirmed for the merger.
While sharing the reasons for the merger, Bhutia had then said that he was highly concerned about the governance of the state under the Sikkim Krantikari Morcha (SKM) party’s leadership over the past four years. Apart from this Bhutia had also factored in the issues of complete dilution of Article 371F, erosion of Sikkimese identity under the SKM government ahead of deciding to join the SDF.
After signing out from the world of football in 2011, the former India captain, Bhutia had joined TMC in 2014 and was the Trinamool’s Lok Sabha candidate from Darjeeling and assembly candidate from Siliguri in 2016. He lost both elections before quitting the TMC in February 2018.

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