The last Chogyal (King) of Sikkim

BY SHITAL PRADHAN

I was not born when Sikkim became the 22nd state of the Indian Union, and the only information I have about the political identity of my Sikkim comes from literary knowledge and conversations with elderly people. I personally believe that no nation can develop unless its history, culture, and heritage are preserved. Sikkim, though now part of India, bears the responsibility of every Sikkimese to safeguard its past glory.

Interestingly, a few days ago, my college-going nephew surprised me when he mentioned that a man named STNM could be the last Chogyal, while one of my colleagues added that TNA and TNSSS also bear the name of the last Chogyal. Well, is this the future of Sikkim? If we cannot enable the younger generation to connect with the facts and authenticity of Sikkim, the state will surely lose its vivacious historical pages.

Twenty-five long years have passed since the passing away of the last Chogyal of Sikkim, Late Chogyal Palden Thondup Namgyal. Apart from a memorial park (rather a love nest where couples meet) and a prominent statue at Deorali, we hear very little about our last King.

Born as the second son to Late Chogyal Sir Tashi Namgyal on May 22, 1923, Palden Thondup Namgyal became the twelfth consecrated ruler of Sikkim on April 4, 1965, at the Royal Palace. He studied monkhood between 1931-1934 under his uncle, Lhatsun Rimpoche, and was recognized as the spiritual leader of Phodong and Rumtek monasteries, succeeding Chogyal Sidkeong.

He received education at St Joseph Convent (Kalimpong), St Joseph Academy (Darjeeling), Bishop Cotton School (Simla), and the ICS Training camp at Dehradun. He was appointed heir to the throne after the sudden death of his elder brother in a plane crash during World War II.

The Chogyal was associated with numerous cultural and academic organizations in Sikkim, India, and abroad. He served as the President of the Mahabodhi Delegation to the Sixth Buddhist Council held in Burma in 1954. He participated in the 2,500 Buddha Jayanthi Celebrations in India in 1956 and represented Sikkim at the Sixth World Fellowship of Buddhist Conference in Cambodia in 1961.

In 1958, he established a center for Mahayana and Tibetan studies, now known as the Namgyal Institute of Tibetology. He headed the Sikkim delegation to the World Anti-tuberculosis Conference in Istanbul and was a founding member of the Mountaineering Institute at Darjeeling.

Married to Sangey Deki and later to a US-born Hope Cooke in 1963, he received several of the nation's highest awards, including the Order of the British Empire in 1947, the Padma Vibushan in 1954, the Commander De L'ordre de L'étoile Noire in France in 1956, and the Order of the Jewel of Sikkim in 1973.

Unfortunately for the Chogyal, serious differences arose with the demand for a repoll in one booth by Kazi Lhendup Dorji and Mr. Krishna Chandra Pradhan, which led to the people's agitation in 1973, launched by the Joint Action Committee with the tacit blessings of the Government of India. This people's political movement, spearheaded by Kazi Lhendup Dorji, eventually resulted in Sikkim.