Student unrest signals maturing of democracy

DNA, Published Date:  Aug 07, 2014

Erinjiyal K Santha

Gangtok witnessed violence involving students and the police. National Highway 31A leading to our borders with Tibet (Nathu La) remained blocked for a couple of days and there were bursts of tear-gas shells many times to open up the passage. The unrest is a matter of concern for the region’s students as well as people. Strikes and blockades were not commonplace in this part of the country. Compared to other North-Eastern states, Sikkim, generally known to be peaceful, has been witnessing disturbances since the last elections in May 2014. Two people had lost their lives in election-related violence, which is uncharacteristic of Sikkim’s politics. On July 14, students of Sikkim Government College, Tadong in Gangtok, protested against fee hike by blocking National Highway 31A. The hike was unjustified as the government, in one stroke, increased the semester fee from Rs300 to Rs1,700. The government’s justification was that a hike in tuition fees had been kept in abeyance for several years. The Sikkim government college in Tadong is the first college to have come up in the state; it was established in 1977, as a night college, after the merger of Sikkim with the Indian Union in May, 1975. Prior to that, students had to go to colleges in Darjeeling and other parts of West Bengal; those who had money could land up in Delhi. Access to higher education was the preserve of those who could spend money on travel and live in hostels outside of Sikkim. On July 14, the day when the academic session began, students from the Government College marched to the Ministry of Human Resources Development, demanding a repeal of the fee hike. The officials were not in a mood to entertain the frustrated students who resorted to road blockade; this indeed is an effective means of protest as it is the only main highway to the capital and the Government College in Tadong is right on the National Highway! Gangtok, in any case, is on either side of the highway, and there aren’t many roads in the city. The peaceful protest turned violent when the police, equipped with state-of-the-art protective gear asked them to disperse. A skirmish followed. And then there was a lathicharge and bursting of tear-gas shells. Though the fee hike was revoked, later in the evening, the blockade continued on day two as well and more students joined the strike from other government colleges in Sikkim. As is the case with unrest of this kind, the demand shifted from withdrawing the fee hike to action against the Superintendent of Police, Manoj Tiwari. ‘Action’ meant different things to different sections of the students. Some wanted his dismissal while others demanded that he apologise at the same spot where he ordered the lathicharge. Though it looked to be a spontaneous protest, the fact is that the entire development had to do with the political culture building here over the last few months. The ruling Sikkim Democratic Front (SDF), after having held all the assembly seats until May 2014, has now lost as many as eight out of the ten constituencies around Gangtok to the Sikkim Kranthikari Morcha (SKM). This is a new party, founded only a year ago and led by PS Golay, a close aide of SDF supremo, Pawan Chamling, for several years. Golay was leading the SDF’s student and youth wing until he fell out. This explains the involvement of students as well as a section of the youth and taxi drivers in organising the blockade. Many of them had been under arrest leading the union to call for a strike. People are apprehensive of this unrest and intolerance. However, this could be an indication of a maturing democracy with a strong opposition. This might be the beginning of a transition from a culture of monarchy to that of a democracy. Though these are still early days!

I Miss you

Pettama (my grandma) is no more. She was the most beautiful person I had ever met in my life; less complicated and more lovable! I wanted her to die in last August because i loved her and still I love her so much. She was healthy then; walking around like a soothing wind. Except for some hearing problem, she was in her usual spirit. She deserved a better death than suffering almost a year, depending on others for everything. She was a changed person then.

I saw her in last December, and then she hardly remembered me. I had waited for a long time searching for a speck of memory revisiting her. I cried hard from the realisation that we lost each other for ever. I loved her so much and still I love her.

She was a person who easily laughed and easily cried on somebody’s sufferings. She had less grey hairs for her age and was thin and elegant. Rajan, my twin brother, teasingly called her Simren, the gorgeous Tamil actress.

She had had a bad childhood, she told us once, nothing much to eat and she had been an agriculture worker before her romantic whirlpool marriage with a middleclass man. She had always maintained that it was a one sided love story; he even tried to break in her house to convince his profound love for her.

Married to a revolutionary was not easy those days, however romantic it was! Activities of the Communist Party of India were banned those days and her husband, my grandpa (whom I have seen only as a framed picture on the wall) was a ‘courier’ with the party then. He participated in a direct action along with the coir workers under the instruction of the party. He died (was killed) soon due to police torture, leaving six years marriage, three children of five, three and a year old and a 25 year old widow.  She took up every odd job to take care of the children. Once pointing at an old building in Trichur Town, she told me, you know Ammu, I carried stones up during the construction of that building. She said it a matter of fact not in a compliant mode. She never does. That is why she was different.

Then on, life was struggle for her; however she never carried it on her face. She had little worries (that’s what we thought) and few wrinkles on her face. She always was lively and we had never felt the so called generation gap between us. That was there between her daughter (my mother) and us. Regular scolding and occasional beatings (it would have been often it not for the interference our great grandfather) reminded us that she was our mother patriarch and we are the wards.

“Did you go to school, Pettama”, once we asked her. She replied smilingly, yes, when it rained in the evenings I and the cattle used to take refuge in the village school compound. But she was an eager listener and learner and used to pick up few English words from us and use it inappropriately. Once she said that “ aa pashuvum ee passuvum tammil vallya distance illa”! What she meant was that there is not much difference between the two cows. We used to laugh at her, she too laughed with us.

I can go on writing about her; fond memories of her. During the study holidays, for days she used to sit with me while I am studying, even in the middle of the nights making me black tea. Like a shadow she was there. And the way she used to talk to a snake, a rare visitor. She would ask the snake to go away, “we have given your share, don’t you remember (she was reminding the snake about the last year’s naga pooja offerings). Now don’t scare the children, go away”! She also used to talk to her cows; you believe it or not cows used to listen to her!

 Now she has left and I know she has to go; she suffered enough for a year. However, she left me the fragrance of her chandriaka soap and a lot of memories.