1958 Sikkimese general election
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14 seats in the Sikkim State Council
  Majority party Minority party
 
Party SSC SNP
Last election 6 6
Seats won 7 6

General elections were held in Sikkim in 1958.[1] The Sikkim State Congress emerged as the largest party, winning seven of the 20 seats.[1] Voter turnout was around 35%.[1]

Electoral system

The State Council was established in 1953 by the Chogyal.[2] It originally had 18 members, of which 12 were elected and six (including the President) appointed by the Chogyal.[2] Of the 12 elected members, six were for the Nepali community and six for the Lepcha and the Bhutia communities.[2] For the 1958 elections the number of seats was increased to 20. One seat for the Sangha was added, together with an unreserved seat.[2][3]

Candidates for election to the Council had to be at least 30 years old, whilst the voting age was set at 21.[1] Around 55,000 voters registered for the election.[1]

Results

PartySeats
Bhutia-LepchaNepaliOthersTotal+/–
Sikkim State Congress1607Increase1
Sikkim National Party50160
Independent0011Increase1
Appointed members–––60
Total66220Increase2
Source: Hamlet Bareh

Constituency-wise

# Constituency Reservation Name Party
1 Gangtok Bhutia-Lepcha Sonam Tshering Lepcha
2 Kesang Wangdi
3 Sikkimese Nepali Narendra Nar Singh Sikkim State Congress
4 North-Central Bhutia-Lepcha Martam Topden
5 Thendup Bhutia
6 Sikkimese Nepali Nahakul Pradhan Sikkim State Congress
7 Namchi Bhutia-Lepcha Kazi Norbu Wangdi
8 Sikkimese Nepali Sangkhaman Rai Sikkim State Congress
9 Kashi Raj Pradhan
10 Pemayangtse Bhutia-Lepcha Gaden Tashi
11 Sikkimese Nepali Sher Bahadur Gurung Sikkim State Congress
12 Bhujit Mukhia
13 General General Chaksung Bhutia
14 Sangha Lharipa Rinzing Lama Sikkim National Party
Source: Sikkim Darbar Gazette[4][5]

Appointed members

In addition to the elected members, six others were appointed to the Sikkim State Council by the Chogyal, on 15 March; Rai Bahadur Densapa, Rev. Chotuk Tsering Pazo, Indra Prasad Subba, Bhairap Bahadur Lamchaney, Atal Singh Dewan and Hon Lt Prem Bahadur Basnet.[6]

Executive Council

The Executive Council was chosen from among the elected members, in addition to the Dewan of Sikkim, who was its President:

Name Responsibility
N. K. Rustomji President
K. R. Pradhan Senior Executive Councillor
Martam Topden Executive Councillor
Nahakul Pradhan Deputy Executive Councillor
Norbu Wangdi Deputy Executive Councillor
Chuksung Bhutia Deputy Executive Councillor
Source: Proceedings of the Executive Council[7]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Hamlet Bareh (2001) Encyclopaedia of North-East India: Sikkim Mittal Publications, p17
  2. ^ a b c d Bareh, p16
  3. ^ Tashi Namgyal (16 March 1958). "Proclamation of His Highness Sir Tashi Namgyal, KCSI, KCIE, Maharaja of Sikkim, Dated the 16th March, 1958" (PDF). p. 102. Retrieved 16 June 2021.
  4. ^ "Results of elections - 1958". Sikkim Darbar Gazette. 8 (7). December 1958.
  5. ^ Pem Choden Tenzing (July 2019). Monarchy to Democracy Understanding Political Development in Sikkim, 1970-1994 (Thesis). p. 149. Retrieved 17 June 2021.
  6. ^ Tashi Namgyal (22 February 1959). "Nominations to State Council". p. 54. Retrieved 17 June 2021.
  7. ^ N. K. Rustomji (7 April 1959). "Proceedings of the Executive Council - 7th April, 1959". p. 94. Retrieved 22 June 2021.
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